GRAFFITI GENERAL FRESCO

1931, PANTIN : the Chamber of Commerce and Industry opens the MAGASINS GENERAUX building.

20,000 square meters of concrete featuring 1,4 km of gangways right next to the Ourcq Canal where custom-free next goods now begin to arrive and depart. 

In 1958, over 120 employees are working at the Magasins.

But the 60s and 70s, and the changes in the agricultural food industries take their toll on the activities at the building, and at the start of 2000, the Magasins Generaux closes its doors.

The abandoned building becomes a ^playground for the local graffiti artists.

Already brimming over with history, the walls now have something new to say, and the plain grey of concrete gives way to a variety of colours.

The stylistic blending of the existing architecture with graffiti created on the building adds a touch of notoriety to this exceptional location.



Today, the sound of aerosol sprays is obscured by that pneumatic drills. Advertising agency BETC will be moving in as of 2016. 

But before opening a new page in the life of the building, we had to make sure we were also preserving its past with www.graffitigeneral.com

























































With this end in view, each square metre of the Magasins was photographed in full and translated into a virtual 3D model, thereby conserving the works inside and out and giving one and all a chance to relive the glory days of the building’s street art era.

A fresco is a work of graffiti that includes background and is embellished with various decorative elements and characters. Often, more than one graffiti artist will work on a fresco. Several examples can be found inside the building.