Voices on the Walls

This experience explores Bordeaux through its street art, offering a different view of the city beyond its UNESCO status. Led by Fleur, the walk unfolds within the city centre, following traces left by writers and street artists on walls, shutters, and urban surfaces. At each stop, Fleur introduces the artists behind the works, their inspirations, and techniques they use. The discussion opens onto the relationship between street art and society, and how these works engage with public debate and respond to current issues. Along the way, Fleur provides broader background, outlining how tagging and graffiti first appeared, how they evolved into street art, and how cities negotiate this form of artistic movement today — between regulation, preservation, and erasure. Drawing on her long-term documentation of Bordeaux’s street art scene and on conversations with local artists, she shares insight into creative process, artistic intention, and how each piece interacts with its surroundings.

Bordeaux is most often framed through eighteenth-century façades and wine estates. This walk shifts attention to a more contemporary artistic expression, bringing attention to voices and ideas rarely included in its public image. Fleur’s perspective is shaped by years of focused work blogging about and documenting street artists active in Bordeaux. Through direct encounters and interviews, she has explored their themes, working methods, and intentions. This allows her to present the works as deliberate interventions — shaped by specific individuals responding to specific moments. Because street art is ephemeral, the route reflects what is visible now. Works may fade, be painted over, or replaced. That impermanence becomes part of the experience. The walk offers a way to understand Bordeaux through what is directly being expressed on its surfaces — voices that rarely appear in guidebooks, yet actively participate in the city’s public conversation.

After more than ten years in London, Fleur Borde returned to Bordeaux in 2011 and began reshaping her professional path around what she knows and loves most: the Gironde, its landscapes, and its wine culture. She became an independent guide in 2018 and earned her official guiding license in 2023. Alongside her guiding work, she holds a WSET Level 3 certification, grounding her wine expertise firmly in the Bordeaux region. Fleur designs and leads experiences that help travelers understand Bordeaux and the Gironde beyond their labels—through walks, encounters, and carefully considered routes. Her approach is driven by curiosity, firsthand knowledge, and a sustained commitment to sharing the region with clarity and depth.

Comfortable shoes for cobbled stones. Hat, raincoat or umbrella depending on the weather.