UK Transplant Recreates NYC Street Signage as Analog Art

A UK-born creative living in Harlem, New York City, has translated the city's ubiquitous street art and grime into a series of hand-painted street signs. The project, documented on Instagram under the handle @shepsdesignsthings, is part of the artist's broader prop design journey. Inspired by years of absorbing the layered graffiti, stickers, and grit that define NYC's visual landscape—from lamp-posts and stop signs to bodega storefronts—the artist sought to capture the feeling of the streets in tangible form. Using blank street signs as canvases, they experimented with techniques to simulate rust, rushed lettering, and accumulated dirt, aiming for an authentic, lived-in aesthetic. The artist, who cites nostalgia from American films, TV shows, and music videos by A$AP Mob as influences, describes walking the city as akin to traversing an exhibit, where the untrained hand and eye produce expressions worthy of a gallery. This analog endeavor is framed as a deliberate counterpoint to the prevailing discourse around AI and digital tools, embracing a tactile, imperfect, and therapeutic process free from client expectations. The resulting works, which include recreations of signage and layered compositions, are presented as a personal homage to the cinematic, imperfect character of New York City.