> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # A Street Artist’s Whimsical Interventions Turn the City into a Playground - URL: https://hyperallergic.com/street-artist-tom-bob/ - Published: 2017-07-28T16:40:04.000Z - Updated: 2025-11-24T16:12:08.000Z - Description: The New York-based street artist Tom Bob has a knack for bringing mundane bits of the cityscape to cartoonish life. - Author: Monica Uszerowicz - Tags: Art, Photo Essays, Public Art, Street Art, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 07:30(2016, 2017, part 3) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/19425389_141780483063292_186308040553660416_n.jpg) Monkey meters in New Bedford, Massachusetts (all images from Tom Bob’s Instagram and used with permission) Animism — the belief that all creatures and objects are imbued with spirit — is pre-pagan, mythical, and, if translated into [cartoons](http://68.media.tumblr.com/tumblr%5Fm09je6R0k71qas7f1o1%5F250.gif?ref=hyperallergic.com), endearing. Consider the charm, at once magical and comforting, of the [singing flowers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7YEHt6cUMQ&ref=hyperallergic.com) from Disney’s *Alice in Wonderland*, the stars of [Władysław Starewicz’s stop- motion films](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVatbWZpmPw&ref=hyperallergic.com) (dead insects, toy puppies), and even [Clippy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office%5FAssistant?ref=hyperallergic.com), the divisive and now-defunct Microsoft Office assistant — say what you will, but he was bright-eyed and wholesome, and always knew when I was writing a letter. Similarly, the street art of [Tom Bob](https://www.instagram.com/tombobnyc/?hl=en&ref=hyperallergic.com) animates pockets of the urban landscape in New York City, New Bedford, Massachusetts, and other locales, making even a city’s most innocuous objects seem alive and adorable. Storm drains become Oreos; a drainpipe becomes the trunk of a smiling elephant; a barred window becomes an open birdcage; an electrical outlet becomes a man brushing his giant teeth. Even when he isn’t transforming innocuous street items into something far cuter and more vibrant, the results are sublime, from an alien mural on a beach, for example, to the kissy-faced, neon-hued whales on the roof of two New Bedford buildings. The effect is to evoke a delightful urban playground that, admittedly, is very Instagram-friendly, but, more importantly, otherworldly. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/20225480_1481646318581386_1308482883605757952_n.jpg) New Bedford, Massachusetts. The New York-based artist’s work is very much in the spirit of the French street artist [OakOak](http://www.oakoak.fr/?ref=hyperallergic.com), who also brings the city to life, or the Québecois artist [Roadsworth](http://www.roadsworth.com/street/?ref=hyperallergic.com), who turns it into a playground. It also evokes animator Sean Charmatz’s “[Secret World of Stuff](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02AlRs-zlW8&ref=hyperallergic.com),” in which everyday objects (leaves, soup dumplings, ice cubes, bike racks, hanging planters) are animated laughing, crying, melting, or hugging each other. It’s all the stuff of childhood imagination, but if you know how and where to look, little wonders are hidden everywhere. *h/t* [*Bored Panda*](http://www.boredpanda.com/street-art-tom-bob-new-york/?ref=hyperallergic.com) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/19380010_151436238734374_5206248623364374528_n.jpg) An elephant drainpipe in New Bedford, Massachusetts ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/18514162_262459714220100_7033722354152767488_n.jpg) Electrical outlet lobsters in New Bedford, Massachusetts ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/19762064_1892045524395229_2243802764968722432_n.jpg) Ringo Starr ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/20180749_154255761807122_574259555794419712_n.jpg) The rooftop of two Elm Street buildings in New Bedford, Massachusetts ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/19534382_492801304397045_456357085701996544_n.jpg) A storm drain in Brooklyn, New York City ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/18380310_1841819466139474_5517918701929627648_n.jpg) A “snake in the grass” in New York City ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/16906750_1285986571477307_5707844659724681216_n-1.jpg) Traffic cone stencil art in New York City ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/14582487_344404962567590_8406336615680573440_n.jpg) Buttonwood Park, New Bedford, Massachusetts ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2017/07/19379930_144257706134911_2530762865887936512_n.jpg) A freed blackbird, in the spirit of Maya Angelou, in New Bedford, Massachusetts *View more of Tom Bob’s work on his* [*Instagram*](https://www.instagram.com/tombobnyc/?ref=hyperallergic.com)*.*