Nissan Cleans up European Cities with World's First Car-Powered Graffiti

Nissan LEAF powered ‘Reverse Graffiti’ street art in London and Hamburg

Mass-scale mural imagines cleaner capital cities, without car fumes

The artwork is on show in London Waterloo and on the banks of the St. Annenufer canal

LONDON -- October 1, 2014: Nissan is highlighting Europe’s battle with air quality by using the 100% electric Nissan LEAF – the world’s best-selling electric vehicle (EV) – to power a striking series of street art murals in London and Hamburg.

“It's a pleasure to be given the opportunity to create public art in this way and I'm very pleased with the iconic simplicity of the murals and their message.”

Nissan has commissioned Reverse Graffiti artist, Moose – the founder of his field – to create the mass-scale murals which were unveiled last week and depict the city’s iconic skylines.

In a world-first, the jet washers used to clean the walls were powered by the Nissan LEAF via the LEAF to Home equipment – a portable device that converts electricity from the car’s battery to provide as much as two days-worth of power to a household on a single charge.

Produced to highlight the growing issue of poor air quality across Europe’s largest cities, it aims to showcase how much cleaner they could be if more of us adopted electric cars.

Unlike traditional graffiti, Moose creates his art by cleaning dirt and grime off surfaces using a jet washer or wire brush, leaving a striking design in negative on the wall. Much of the dirt is caused by particulate matter from vehicle exhausts, levels of which often exceed guidelines and limits in busy areas across Europe’s cities.

The works of art – which stand some 2.5 metres tall and 10 metres wide – are on show in Waterloo, London and on the banks of the St Annenufer canal in Hamburg, and both feature a host of each city’s best-known landmarks: Buckingham Palace, The Shard, Battersea Power Station in London; and Chilehaus, Heinrich-Hertz-Turm and Hamburg Rathaus in Hamburg.

Before the art made its way onto the walls, Moose sketched the skylines by hand before creating stencils that pieced together to produce the finished masterpieces.

The campaign places Nissan at the heart of the debate, leading the call for clean air and smarter cities.

"I've been using reverse graffiti for fifteen years now, in fact I named it. My whole ethos is about highlighting the amount of pollution we endure daily using a very positive harmless method that never fails to ask questions about what we accept and what we shouldn't accept in our environment. For these reasons I was keen to be involved in this project,” explained Moose, who originates from Leeds.

“Electric cars and alternative fuelling systems provide the brightest future we've ever known in the history of the automotive industry in terms of protecting our environment.

“It's a pleasure to be given the opportunity to create public art in this way and I'm very pleased with the iconic simplicity of the murals and their message."

Moose’s artwork is on show and Nissan is encouraging the public to come out and see it for themselves.

Jean-Pierre Diernaz, EV Director, Nissan Europe, added: “This piece of art is a striking call to action that air quality is one of the biggest issues facing the citizens and visitors of Europe’s largest cities today. It is a reminder that electric vehicles don’t have an exhaust to emit the kind of air pollution which has stained the wall Moose has created his artworks on.

“Working with Moose to highlight the effect of air quality on our cities through art powered by the Nissan LEAF is an exciting and powerful way of reminding people about the benefits of zero emission vehicles.”

For further information on the Nissan LEAF 100% electric family car or the zero emission e-NV200 electric van, please visit: www.nissan.co.uk