Whether she’s painting murals on the sides of buildings or conceiving dreamy hotels like the Salt of Palmar in Mauritius, artist Camille Walala uses color to evoke a sense of happiness. “Everything should be more colorful,” she says. With her signature style being defined by optimism, Walala’s work is street art with a purpose, and it’s an approach that is audacious in its simplicity. Indeed, it’s the reaction she covets. “You realize people are crossing the road [to see your work]; the power of color [does that].”
The French-born, London-based Walala studied textile design at the University of Brighton in England before switching her focus to large-scale street art 10 years ago. “It was nice putting things together,” she says, “but I wanted to push my work into a bigger range and do something unexpected.” In the decade since, Walala’s work has redefined the way art can be perceived.
Vibrant hues mark the Walala Pump & Go in Fort Smith, Arkansas
In 2014, her Dream Come True mural reinvigorated a plain black monolith on North Street in London into a striking piece of art, resplendent in pastel stripes and zigzagging black and white lines. Things took off from there, including a collaboration with Giorgio Armani in 2016 on a campaign for its New Pop accessories collection, where blocks of primary colors cast a hyper-realistic background for the brand’s shoes and purses. “I’m not that compromising. People call me because I do what I do [without limits],” she says.
Recently, Walala and the women-led collective Justkids conceived the Walala Pump & Go. Here, a kaleidoscope of colors wraps an abandoned gas station in Fort Smith, Arkansas, creating a buzzy social hub and stunning visual landmark in town. “I want to effect people,” she says. “I love that emotion. It’s a simple feeling, but [I want to] make people smile.”
Walala’s mural covers the exterior of a building in Industry City, Brooklyn, New York.
Walala transformed South Molton street in London into an immersive corridor of color.
A vibrant bench in South Molton street in London
