Passersby step into interactive mural (pictures)

Artist paints a mural on a Malaysian wall and issues the camera-saturated public a creative challenge to take their own photos of it. The results? Wonderful, and wonderfully diverse.

Leslie Katz

July 3, 2012 6:38 p.m. PT

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Nicky Ooi

The ears have it

Among his street art in the Malaysian state of Penang, Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic painted a mural of two children, then affixed a bicycle to the image and invited passersby with cameras to add their own flourishes. They are doing that, by the hundreds, with Zacharevic posting some of the most compelling crowdsourced shots to his Facebook fan page through July 5. The next day, at a George Town arts event, he plans to name two winning photos -- one chosen for creativity and the other for garnering the most Facebook "Likes."

Zacharevic's creative challenge has produced quite a colorful collection from the camera-laden public. Some people snap photos of themselves chasing the kids down the road on foot or bike or leaping and twisting in midair. Others add text or props like balloons and stuffed animals or go sepia or color-saturated with photo-editing software. In this shot, the young boy rider gets his ear pinched by a stranger; that's happened to the poor lad more than once during Zacharevic's photo challenge.

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Lucas

Two-way traffic

A passerby took this shot of a local riding his bike past the mural in George Town, Penang. "This is street art at its best, when it stops being an individual painting and becomes part of the public imagination," artist Ernest Zacharevic says of the collaboration.

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Qi Xin Phyllis

Catch that thief!

Some photographers, like Qi Xin Phyllis, imagined entire scenarios around this Ernest Zacharevic mural, which is located on Armenian Street in George Town, Penang.

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Shioupyng Lim

In danger

Faster! Faster! Yet another photographer appeared to come up with a colorful story upon seeing Ernest Zacharevic's mural of two kids zipping down Armenian Street on a bike.

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Alice Kxp

Depth of field

For a slightly different perspective, Alice Kxp placed her subject farther in front of the mural than most other photographers. Hundreds of Penang passersby have pointed their cameras at the George Town mural and sent the resulting images to artist Ernest Zacharevic.

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Jo Blanc

Chipmunks in a basket

Passing photographers add a range of props to Ernest Zacharevic's mural in George Town, Penang -- in this case Alvin, Simon, and Theodore -- giving the scene the feel of street theater.

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Vendy Tan

Headed to Neverland

Vendy Tan added a lush backdrop and some text to this photo of the mural. "There is no fixed meaning," artist Ernest Zacharevic says of his street art in George Town in the state of Penang, Malaysia. "The artwork is open for interpretations, recreations and narratives."

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Ernest Zacharevic/Fauzi Yusoff

Black and white

With many of the images posted to artist Ernest Zacharevic's Facebook fan page, the public can comment on the photos -- and even help choose one of two winners of Zacharevic's contest.

"I love the white bike contrast to the black bike: vintage vs modern," Facebook commenter Mei Wan Chan says of Fauzi Yusoff's take on the Armenian Street mural.