Art: Etienne Lavie transforms Paris' billboards into classical masterpieces

Sometimes advertisements are the best thing in the world – and by sometimes I mean when you need the loo during the finale episode of Game of Thrones – but most of the time they’re just a bit of a pain. While most of us grin and bear it, French street artist Etienne Lavie decided to take action, and see what the streets of Paris would look like without them.

His recent project OMG! who stole my ads? transformed the usually ad-filled streets of Paris into an open air exhibition. He replaced every advert, whether on a billboard or bus stop poster, with a classic work of art, and the results were fantastic. Imagine walking to work surrounded by the beauty of Da Vinci and Michelangelo instead of ads for some pretty average trainers or a fast food joint’s latest offering! It’s the stuff of dreams.

Lavie made his transformations digitally, so Parisians have not actually experienced this bliss first hand, but it doesn’t make the impact any less great. We can’t wait to see what he’ll do next!