Cities are constantly evolving. Urban surfaces are transformed, artworks disappear and new interventions emerge, reshaping the ways in which urban spaces are occupied, experienced, interpreted and communicated. It is within this dynamic context that StreetArtCEI, a research project developed by the Centre for Intercultural Studies (CEI), explores graffiti and street art as contemporary cultural practices and forms of artistic expression embedded in the social, cultural and spatial fabric of cities.

Grounded in Intercultural Studies, StreetArtCEI approaches urban art as a multifaceted phenomenon at the intersection of cultures, identities, languages and lived experiences. Beyond the documentation of artistic interventions in public spaces, the project investigates the cultural meanings, visual narratives and social dynamics through which urban art engages with places and communities. It seeks to understand how these practices contribute to the construction of cultural identities, the negotiation of urban spaces and the expression of individual and collective memories.

At the core of StreetArtCEI lies a continuously expanding digital archive and virtual museum, bringing together thousands of images of graffiti, street art and other manifestations of urban visual culture.

This archive can be explored through geographical and artist-based routes, interactive maps and Points of Interest (POIs), offering multiple perspectives on the relationship between art and the urban environment. Geographical routes reveal the specific cultural and spatial contexts in which artworks emerge, while artist-based routes trace the presence and diversity of individual artistic practices across different locations.

Combining visual documentation with academic research and public dissemination, StreetArtCEI also brings together scientific publications, research outputs, image collections, resources on street music and media coverage.

StreetArtCEI is both a research platform and a living digital repository of urban visual culture, that opens up new perspectives on the diversity, complexity and transformations of urban life.