Street art, the backdrop to Tel Aviv life

A trek through southern Tel Aviv reveals unique characteristics of the city that set it apart from other areas of Israel. There is incredible diversity in the people who swarm the streets and roads: Ashkenazis, Sephardis, Ethiopians, Asians, young, old, Hasidim, secular, shaved heads and dreads all mingle to create a buzz quite unlike anywhere else.

And there is a backdrop to it all. Scrawled on every wall are signs of the dominant youthful undercurrent that has swept the city. The majority appears to be amateur and simply as an outlet for defiant protest, but every so often your eyes fall on a piece of beautiful and inspired art.

Some seems to have an underlying message; others simply appear to be art for art's sake. But here in south Tel Aviv, amid the dog muck and run-down apartment blocks, the words of the prophets truly are written on the subway walls and tenement halls.