The streets of Vilnius, Lithuania are full of ghost buses that blend right into their surroundings while passing through intersections as if only existing in translucent ethereal form. Matching up to the scenery beyond when glimpsed at just the right moment, the buses are momentarily camouflaged thanks to photorealistic printed imagery mounted to their exteriors for this summer’s Vilnius Street Art Festival (media by Studio Vieta).

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Lithuanian artist Liudas Parulskis collaborated with Studio Vieta to print full-scale scenes from the city onto public trolleybuses, a charmingly retro mode of transportation that has remained popular here despite being replaced by newer transit systems in many modern metropolises. ‘Vanishing Trolleybus’ is a temporary installation encouraging pedestrians to try to catch a glimpse or a photo of the effect in action at just the right ‘vanishing point.’

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One bus appears to be covered in imagery depicting traditional local architecture, while others capture specific street scenes around the city. Parulskis added a wolf running across an intersection to one of the buses, winking at the unofficial mascot of the city.

Display your own little corner of your favorite city – or the entire metropolis of Manhattan – on your wall or table, scaled down to 1:5000 and simplified in white monochrome. ‘Microscapes’ are 3D-printed tiles developed from up-to-date aerial scale data so they can evolve along with built environments, including buildings still under construction or in planning phases. The designers are kicking off their campaign with New York City and will expand to other major cities across the United States and the world once their Kickstarter campaign is complete.

The entire island of Manhattan is available in the form of individual, 6” square tiles, but to collect all 200, it would cost you a rather shocking $25,000. But early backers on the campaign can get a single tile of their choice, featuring some of Manhattan’s most popular locations, for a pledge of $65 or more. Each tile captures roughly half a square mile of the city.

The tiles are made from biodegradable, non-toxic white thermoplastic derived from cornstarch and range in height according to whatever section of the city you’ve chosen, up to 5.5 inches tall for the highest skyscrapers. The campaign is already generously over-funded, but you’ve still got a little bit of time left to snag a pre-order of your own.

Kozyndan illustrate compelling scenes from major urban areas all over the globe, from San Francisco to Tokyo, New York to Newcastle. The Kozy-and-Dan artistic duo translates their urban travel experiences into creatively colored panoramic illustrations. Armed primarily with pencils and digital media, Kozyndan represent urban locations via a whimsical mix of realism and fantasy, infused with social commentary.

Chinatown, San Francisco: The Yum-cha Militia has been the header of Web Urbanist for some time now, and has received praise from numerous readers. This piece depicts “the imaginary history of the Yum-cha militia … an old chinese ladies’ auxilliary group that mostly spends it time playing mah jong and gossiping” in a fight against the SARS virus on the streets of San Francisco.

Soho, New York: The Amorous Nudibranchs Paint the Town Red plays on the classic idea of a night-on-the-town alluded to in the title. However, in this case, the painting is being done by “magical sea-slugs, out on their first date in the streets of Soho.” This illustration shows the artists’ keen interest in and attention to color as well as the more whimsical side of their work.

Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK: A matter of PRIDE: The Battle on the River-Tyn is a truly fantastical work, illustrating imaginary epic battles and featuring (if you look closely) recurring characters from other pieces they have created. The particulary mixed nature of this piece is perhaps a reflection of the fact that they “had a blast” while visiting.

Melrose Avenue, LA: Wasteland sum this scene up well, which Kozyndan describe as “weird” but “mostly dull” place. The colors of this work suggest the desert, reinforced by the relative emptiness of the scene, which is only punctuated by a few odd creatures here or there.

London, England: Like Sands Through the Hour Glass… shows the strange mix of activities, both real and surreal, of a street in London that Kozyndan “love to hate.” The varied uses – from adult video stores to crepes stands – are mirrored by the strange blend of characters that occupy this scene.

Fremont, Seattle: Portaits From the (Off) Center of The Universe interprets the struggle between opposing forces in this regionally famous community. In Fremont, hippies, corporate interests, Scandinavian heritage and the fishing industry all struggle to assert themselves. While still creatively surreal, this piece also shows Kozyndan’s interest in social and cultural factors.

Kozyndan have done an impressive variety of work beyond panoramic murals! Be sure to visit the Kozyndan shop, which features everything from rare prints to popular posters. Also: our special thanks to the pair for generously allowing us to use their work as our header image!