Alex Wain spotted it yesterday (see more of his gorgeous photos here).

What better way to start Jan 1st 2011, than with some photos from my ‘hood.

Even photographed a burglary taking place.

It’s not often we get such witty street art in the neighbourhood at the moment. Anyone know who’s responsible?

A lot of glue has been spilled on walls since we last walked through.

It’s been quiet on the street art front lately. But there’s a wild amount of development happening on Llankelly Place at the moment, it seems like every second shop is a new cafe. End result, a heightened graffiti scene?

These paste ups by Loom have a heavy sea shanty vibe. Ink fading and dog-eared, despite being new, which seems appropriate to the subject. A bearded old man of the sea, a kindly Neptune?

And a lean pirate, twitchy for his next target.

On the other hand, here’s a robot and another wise old man.

It’s really interesting on Llankelly Place at the moment. A lot of development, but still a lot of empty retail space. We were impressed when it first reappeared, but it’s taken a while to pick up.

That’s a collaboration between Houl and Scribla – possibly called ‘Chopper Kurt De Niro: It hurts…’

We’ve seen great work around the corner on Arnold Street in the past. Beastman’s gone now, though. Now it’s another piece: ‘Chasing Love’. This time by a couple of Melbourne artists, MaxCat (aka Justin Feuerring) and Miss Riz.

On the other side of Goulburn Street, Cafe Lounge has a beautifully abstract wall, signed ‘S.H.’ I don’t know any more about that one.

With the Record Store on one side of the street and Cafe Lounge on the other, it makes for a bright, regularly changing street. Obviously it’s good marketing. But it makes a real addition to the streetscape, too. You get the sense they’re part of the neighbourhood, and that’s a good thing.

You can find this pair of eyes on Burnell Place, Darlinghurst, just near the corner of Liverpool Lane. It’s on a well camouflaged car park door.

Double mirror? Secret portal? I really like them. Not much more to say.

This graffiti on the corner of Kells Lane and Langley Street, Darlinghurst, seems like a way to claw that back. Yes, the police visit our neighbourhood. See, look at this permanent bit of police tape, the paint on the kerb seems to say.

“While you make pretty speeches, I’m being cut to shreds,” says the graffiti.

It’s scrawled, but it doesn’t feel rushed. The writing doesn’t give much away.

“You feed me to the lions. A delicate balance.”

A poem?

UPDATE: Duh. Just got a tweeted reply. It’s a Radiohead song, ‘Like Spinning Plates,’ from Amnesiac. Of course it would be. There goes my stadium art rock cred.

Whoever made it, their character looks concerned. But I would be too if I had four eyes.

I couldn’t place the name at first – Mr Perso’s – but then I hit the web and remembered. Mr Perso & Detch was the ‘legal graffiti company’ behind a spate of Green Day pieces on walls around the city last year. Can’t say I’m feeling the concept.

The pair’s sharp couplet: “they keep painting, we keep painting.”

“They keep getting rid of our stuff and we keep doing it again. It’s a pointless process,” said Numskull – the piece was triggered by yet another campaign against street art.

But as one of our readers, Tony, noted in the comments at the time:

Well, actually, this is not a nazi cross (Swastika) at all. The real cross is the other way around (mirrored image).

This ‘reversed Swastika’ can be found in numerous places:

1. The Nydam Bog (look at the bottom of the page).
2. A buddhist temple
3. The flag of the city Hirosaki, in Japan

So we could be facing a very angry Danish from the year 200AD, a peaceful buddhist monk, a Japanese backpacker eager to come back to Oz… or an angry (and probably drunk) kid that doesn’t even know what he’s talking about. Place your bets ;-)

So there you have it, and it’s reappeared at the tail end of another summer holiday.