Delray Beach is known for sunshine, tennis, and pristine Atlantic waters — but behind the postcard-perfect scenery lies an unexpected cultural heartbeat: its alleys. Far from forgotten backstreets, Delray’s alleyways have transformed into vivid outdoor art corridors, attracting photographers, creatives, and curious travelers from around the world.
This movement began when local artists, frustrated with the lack of accessible gallery space, turned blank stucco walls into canvases. Today, Pineapple Grove and the Downtown Arts District overflow with murals: neon jellyfish floating across buildings, 1950s-style portraits, abstract oceans, and surreal dreamscapes. Every wall tells a story of Florida’s eclectic personality — part coastal calm, part electric creativity.
What makes Delray unique is the community involvement. Shop owners offer their facades to painters; tourists follow self-guided mural maps; and new installations appear monthly, ensuring the streets are never the same twice. Even the city’s utility boxes are painted into cheerful micro-murals, turning everyday infrastructure into art.
For visitors, exploring these alleyways feels like stepping into an open-air museum with no admission and no rules. The art is raw, unfiltered, and reflects the spirit of a city that embraces reinvention. Delray Beach may be famous for its beaches — but its most colorful waves are made of paint.
Harlan Kilstein the publisher of this website is a resident of Delray. He has lived in Palm Beach County since 1997, In that time he has explored everything for surfing on private beaches in Delray to walks up and down Atlantic Avenue.
He is known to drop everything at a moment's notice to fish in Delray Lakes, bird watch, goes horseback riding or play pinball at the Delray Pin Ball Museum.
You can find him either sipping a coffee on Atlantic Avenue or drinking a flight of whiskey at Warren's.
One thing is certain, he knows Delray Beach.
