Penang Street Art Walk: 18 Must-See Murals in George Town

Penang street art is the reason my camera roll from George Town looks like a scavenger hunt. A boy asleep on a real motorbike, a tiger painted in a single day, cats on half the walls of one block, and behind it all a city quietly telling you its own history, one gable wall at a time.

Most street art lists throw thirty murals at you in alphabetical order and wish you luck. This one is a route. I've ordered all eighteen stops so that most are only one to three minutes' walk from the last (there are exactly two longer legs, and I flag both), starting on Lebuh Ah Quee and finishing at a tattoo-parlour back alley near Komtar. Follow the numbers on the map and you'll see the best of George Town's murals in a single unhurried morning.

The scene owes its fame to Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic, who painted a handful of murals for the 2012 George Town Festival and accidentally gave Penang a second identity. Local and international artists have been adding to the walls ever since, so the walk below jumps from Lithuania to Russia to Singapore to New Zealand without leaving the heritage core.

If you're still assembling the bigger Penang plan, my 3-day George Town itinerary covers the heritage core day by day, and Is Penang worth visiting? is the island-wide list. More from the country on our Malaysia page.

Penang Street Art Walk — 18 Murals in Route Order

Open whole route in Google Maps

The route at a glance

1Boy on a Motorbike
2Little Boy with Pet Dinosaur
3Only You Can Stop Air Pollution
4Kids on a Bicycle
5Harimau
6Skippy the Giant Cat
7Cheah Kongsi Mural
8Butterfly Cat
9The Heritage Cat
10Spice Lady
11Cats in a Green Window
12Reaching Up
13The Window Cat
14The Indian Boatman
15CodeFC Stencils
16Street Busker
17Love Lane Selfie
18Sphynx Cat

1. Boy on a Motorbike

The perfect opener, because it shows you the trick that made Zacharevic famous: the painting doesn't stop at the wall. The sleepy boy is paint; the vintage motorcycle he's slumped on is a real bike, parked against the wall. And the bike has lore. The story goes that a tourist rode it all the way from Vietnam to Penang and simply abandoned it here, which is a better origin story than most museums manage.

Boy on a Motorbike mural by Ernest Zacharevic, a painted sleeping boy slumped over a real vintage motorcycle on Lebuh Ah Quee — Half paint, half motorcycle. The bike is real, and so is the queue on busy days.

Artist: Ernest Zacharevic (Lithuania)
Find it: 12 Lebuh Ah Quee

2. Little Boy with Pet Dinosaur

A few steps along the same street, a small boy walks his pet T-rex on a leash. It's the silliest piece on the route and possibly my favourite Zacharevic for exactly that reason. It's also in great shape: Zacharevic came back and repainted it in 2025, part of a restoration of his 2012 festival murals, so you're seeing it close to its original glory.

Little Boy with Pet Dinosaur mural on Lebuh Ah Quee, a painted boy holding a rope leash tied around a T-rex — Freshly repainted, dinosaur and all.

Artist: Ernest Zacharevic (Lithuania)
Find it: Lebuh Ah Quee, a few doors from the motorbike

3. Only You Can Stop Air Pollution

Further down Lebuh Ah Quee (two minutes, no more), the mood changes. A figure in a gas mask holds a green balloon, and if you look closely at the wall you'll find real cigarettes pressed into the artwork. Malaysian artist Cloakwork usually paints in loud comic colours; this one is quieter and sharper, and it stays with you.

Only You Can Stop Air Pollution mural by Cloakwork on Lebuh Ah Quee, a figure in a gas mask holding a green balloon — Look for the real cigarettes worked into the wall.

Artist: Cloakwork (Malaysia)
Find it: Lebuh Ah Quee, west end

4. Kids on a Bicycle

One minute around the corner and you're at the Penang mural, the one on the postcards, the fridge magnets, and roughly every third Instagram post tagged George Town. Two real-life siblings, six-year-old Tan Yi and her four-year-old brother Tan Kern, ride a real bicycle propped against the Armenian Street wall. It's been loved half to death since 2012, and it still earns the fuss.

Kids on a Bicycle mural by Ernest Zacharevic on Lebuh Armenian, two painted children riding a real bicycle prop — The most photographed wall in Malaysia, and the reason to start this walk early.

Artist: Ernest Zacharevic (Lithuania)
Find it: Lebuh Armenian (Armenian Street)

5. Harimau

Practically next door, a Malayan tiger fills a wall. Harimau is the Malay word for tiger, and the choice is no accident: it's Malaysia's national animal. The part that gets me is the timeline. A piece this size would normally take days; New Zealand artists Theo Arraj and KEA ARTS finished it in a single day in August 2023, mid-way through their travels across Malaysia. One day!

Harimau mural near Lebuh Armenian, a large painted Malayan tiger covering the wall of a heritage shophouse — Malaysia's national animal, painted in one day.

Artist: Theo Arraj & KEA ARTS (New Zealand)
Find it: Lebuh Armenian, steps from Kids on a Bicycle

6. Skippy the Giant Cat

Two minutes south toward Armenian Street Ghaut, a giant grey kitten hangs off a painted rope. Skippy belongs to the 101 Lost Kittens project, painted for the 2013 George Town Festival to raise awareness for stray animals, and it's the biggest and most huggable of the lot. You'll meet more of the litter later on this walk; the cats basically own this corner of the city.

Skippy the giant cat mural from the 101 Lost Kittens project, a huge grey kitten painted holding a rope — The biggest cat in George Town.

Artist: Artists for Stray Animals (101 Lost Kittens)
Find it: Near Armenian Street Ghaut

7. Seh Tek Tong Cheah Kongsi Mural

Three minutes back north brings you to the grounds of the Cheah Kongsi clan house, where Singaporean artist Yip Yew Chong painted an entire 1940s procession: Cheah clan descendants marching their deities around the streets of George Town. The whole scene was reconstructed from oral accounts of the descendants themselves plus archive records, which makes it less a mural and more a memory pinned to a wall. There's a small entrance fee for the clan house grounds, and it's worth paying.

Seh Tek Tong Cheah Kongsi mural by Yip Yew Chong, a painted 1940s clan procession scene on the clan house grounds — A 1940s procession, painted from the descendants' own memories.

Artist: Yip Yew Chong (Singapore)
Find it: Cheah Kongsi, enter from 8 Lebuh Armenian

8. Butterfly Cat

Three minutes on, at 60 Lebuh Acheh, a cat in aviator goggles and a butterfly-wing helmet prepares for takeoff. Another 101 Lost Kittens piece, and the one I'd nominate for best character design. It sits just outside a cafe, across from the alley that leads to Gayo Coffee's back entrance, so this is a natural caffeine stop if the morning is catching up with you.

Butterfly Cat mural on Lebuh Acheh, a painted cat wearing aviator goggles and a butterfly-winged helmet — Goggles on, wings up.

Artist: Artists for Stray Animals (101 Lost Kittens)
Find it: 60 Lebuh Acheh (Acheen Street)

9. The Heritage Cat

Right next door at number 58 is a shop rather than a mural, but I'm counting it, because there are cat murals inside as well as on the street. The Heritage Cat is wall-to-wall cat things: keychains, bags, pouches, t-shirts, paintings. If you're a cat person, budget more time here than you think you need. It was open and fully stocked when we passed.

Cat-themed mural inside The Heritage Cat shop on Lebuh Acheh

Cat decorations and painted cat artwork inside The Heritage Cat shop in George Town

What it is: Cat-theme shop with murals inside
Find it: 58 Lebuh Acheh, beside the Butterfly Cat

10. Spice Lady

Up little Lumut Lane, two minutes away, a woman in a striking red dress pours something from a jug, and nobody can tell you what. That's the charm of it. Julia Volchkova painted her on the wall of the Spices Hotel, and of all the photorealistic murals in George Town this is the one that most looks like it might turn around and ask why you're staring.

Spice Lady mural by Julia Volchkova on the Spices Hotel wall, a woman in a red dress pouring liquid from a jug — What's in the jug? The wall isn't telling.

Artist: Julia Volchkova (Russia)
Find it: Spices Hotel wall, Lumut Lane

11. Cats in a Green Window

Over on Cannon Street, a clutch of painted cats peers out of a green window frame at number 14. It was created to promote stray-animal adoption in the area, part of the same George Town initiative as the kittens you've already met. By this point of the walk you'll have understood the theme: this city really, really likes its cats.

Cats in a Green Window mural at 14 Lebuh Cannon, painted cats looking out from a green window frame — Number 14, Cannon Street. The residents are painted.

Artist: ASA (Artists for Stray Animals)
Find it: 14 Lebuh Cannon (Cannon Street)

12. Reaching Up (Boy on Chair)

A minute away, at the corner where Cannon Street meets Armenian, a small boy stands on a real wooden chair, stretching for a window just out of reach. It's the quietest of Zacharevic's big pieces and the one I kept coming back to (it's the hero photo of this post for a reason). Come in the morning and you might get the corner completely to yourself.

Reaching Up mural by Ernest Zacharevic on Cannon Street, a painted boy standing on a real wooden chair reaching toward a window — The chair is real. The ambition is universal.

Artist: Ernest Zacharevic (Lithuania)
Find it: Cannon Street, across from Armenian Street

13. The Window Cat

Tucked in a small alley off Cannon Street, around the corner from the Boy on Chair and a short walk from the Khoo Kongsi clan temple, a cat watches the lane from a painted window. Blink and you'll walk past the alley entirely, which is precisely why I've pinned it on the map.

The Window Cat mural by WK Setor, a painted cat looking out from a window in a small alley off Cannon Street — Keeping an eye on the alley since forever.

Artist: WK Setor (Malaysia)
Find it: Alley off Lebuh Cannon, near Khoo Kongsi

14. The Indian Boatman

In the narrow alley connecting Stewart Lane with Chulia Lane, often called Boatmen Alley, Julia Volchkova painted a boatman in honour of the Indian community's role in Penang's port history. It's a respectful, almost solemn piece, and the alley setting makes it feel like you've been let in on something.

The Indian Boatman mural by Julia Volchkova in the alley off Stewart Lane, a photorealistic painted boatman — Boatmen Alley, off Stewart Lane.

Artist: Julia Volchkova (Russia)
Find it: 75 Stewart Lane, in the alley to Chulia Lane

15. CodeFC Stencil Art

A minute along Stewart Lane, the style changes completely: highly detailed monochrome stencil work by UK artist CodeFC, layered with cultural and mythological references and his signature urban edge. After a morning of playful cats and children, the black-and-white precision is a palate cleanser.

Monochrome stencil artwork by CodeFC on Stewart Lane featuring a cultural mythological figure

Stencil street art of a figure in colonial dress wearing a gas mask, in the Stewart Lane area of George Town

Artist: CodeFC (UK)
Find it: Stewart Lane

16. Street Busker

Four minutes west and you reach Love Lane, George Town's little strip of bars, cafes and nightlife. On it, a man plays a guitar on a wall: Volchkova again, this time painting a real busker she came across while walking the city. A mural of live music, on the street where the live music actually happens.

Street Busker mural by Julia Volchkova on Love Lane, a painted man playing an acoustic guitar — Painted from a real busker the artist met on her walks.

Artist: Julia Volchkova (Russia)
Find it: Love Lane (Lorong Love)

17. Love Lane Selfie Mural

A few doors down, an orange-haired figure holds a selfie stick against a backdrop of international flags. It's cheerfully self-aware (a mural about tourists taking photos, which exists so tourists can take photos of it), and Love Lane's cafe tables make this the natural drink break before the final leg.

Love Lane mural of an orange-haired figure holding a selfie stick against a backdrop of international flags — A selfie of a selfie. Very Love Lane.

Artist: Unknown / uncredited
Find it: Love Lane (Lorong Love)

18. Sphynx Cat

The finale asks for one more 8-minute walk, south-west to Jalan Dr Lim Chwee Leong. In the back alley of Pitt's Tattoo and Piercing at number 174, Kenji Chai painted a sphynx cat, all wrinkles and attitude. A hairless cat outside a tattoo parlour is the kind of joke that doesn't need explaining, and it puts you a short walk from Komtar and the Kimberley Street food stalls, which is exactly where you want to be when you finish.

Sphynx Cat mural by Kenji Chai in the back alley of Pitt's Tattoo and Piercing on Jalan Dr Lim Chwee Leong — A hairless cat for a tattoo parlour. Perfect casting.

Artist: Kenji Chai (Malaysia)
Find it: Back alley, 174 Jalan Dr Lim Chwee Leong

The ones you find by accident

I'm a dog mom, so my favourite piece of the whole trip is this little doggy, a fox terrier or Jack Russell by the look of him, painted in the same spirit as the 101 Lost Kittens and the work of groups like Artists for Stray Animals, who put animal rights on George Town's walls. I'll be honest with you: I couldn't retrace the exact wall afterwards. He's not on the map because I genuinely don't know where to pin him, and somehow that feels right. Keep your eyes on the side lanes and he might find you.

Small mural of a fox terrier or Jack Russell dog painted on a wall in George Town, Penang — Location: somewhere in the lanes. Finding him is the fun part.

George Town keeps rewarding you like this. All through the heritage core you'll spot the steel-rod sculptures of the Marking George Town project, 52 sets of welded caricatures that tell the story of each street and the immigrants who made the city. And local artists keep adding layers of their own: look for Louis Gan's Brother & Sister on a Swing and pieces by Vincent Phang while you wander.

Marking George Town steel-rod sculpture of a noodle stall scene, welded wire caricature on a George Town wall — Marking George Town: 52 steel-rod stories scattered through the heritage zone.

Is the Penang street art walk free?

Yes. Every mural on this route is on a public street or alley, free at any hour. The only money you might spend is the small entrance fee at Cheah Kongsi (stop 7) and whatever the cafes of Love Lane talk you into.

How long does the route take?

Walking time alone is under an hour. With photo stops, the Heritage Cat shop, and a coffee, plan for two to three hours. Start by 8:30 AM and you'll finish before the heat peaks, right on time for lunch near Kimberley Street.

Where to stay for the street art

Base yourself inside the heritage core and most of this route is on your doorstep. My 3-day George Town itinerary covers where we stayed and how the art fits alongside the mansions, temples and food streets.

FAQ

Who painted the famous Penang murals?

The best-known pieces (Kids on a Bicycle, Boy on a Motorbike, Reaching Up) are by Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic, commissioned for the 2012 George Town Festival. Artists from Malaysia, Russia, the UK, Singapore and New Zealand have added to the walls since.

How many murals are there in George Town?

Dozens, and the number keeps changing as walls fade and new pieces appear. This route covers 18 of the best in walking order, plus the 52 Marking George Town steel-rod sculptures you will pass between them.

Is the street art free to see?

Yes, all the murals are on public streets and alleys. Only the Cheah Kongsi clan house, home of one mural on this route, charges a small entrance fee.

What is the best time of day to see Penang street art?

Early morning, ideally before 9 AM. The light is softer for photos, the popular murals have no queue, and you avoid the midday heat.

How long does the Penang street art walk take?

About two to three hours at a relaxed pace with photo stops, or under an hour of pure walking time.