Observant Florence wanderers might have recently noticed a new street art series around town. The project? ‘L’arte Sa Nuotare,’ or ‘Art Knows how to Swim.’ The artist? A mysterious figure known only as ‘Blub,’ who has yet to publicly reveal his or her identity. Blub recreates iconic images from such renowned works as Piero della Francesca’s The Duke of Urbino and Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, dressing them in scuba and swim gear. But contemporary famous faces aren’t immune: the artist also reproduced the cover of TIME magazine’s recent ‘Person of the Year’ issue, which featured none other than Pope Francis himself – in Blub’s rendering, however, he dons a diving mask with his ecclesiastical garb.
Keep your eyes peeled for the funny figures all over town. TF staff has spotted at least two in the Oltrarno. Check out Blub’s work on Instagram @lartesanuotare and see how many of his or her scuba divers you can find on the streets of Florence.
