On The Wall

You know what, just for the odd bit of banter I can really warm to a place. It’s the little moments of humour which really make an impression to last a day — it’s something which can keep you smiling and all that. That’s my impression of this place, little bits of friendly chat and humour that kept a smile on my face for that day. Nothing too amazing, not enough to go home and talk about or anything, but the over all feeling was that the guys in here are really nice and down to earth.
Inside this little indie treasure of Leeds you can find all kinds of different arty bits and pieces, from amusing photo gift cards (I have purchased one of a rather large lady sitting on a pole, which looks as though … you know what — I’ll leave it there), to cool rock posters, to canvas prints and more. Although all of that seems fairly standard they do also have a sort of ‘gallery’ section which has some much more edgy and specially picked pieces on show which were particularly cool to browse. They also sell a number of other collectable items, such as belt buckles and the ever cool zippo lighters.
Whilst it may be that the shop holds a lot of stock which has become rather popularised over time, Andy Warhol prints spring to mind, that shouldn’t be considered as a bad thing per se, since that’s the point isn’t it? These things are still popular and people still want to buy them. I know this for sure, I’m going to be popping back in here next time a birthday comes up!
For some friendly banter and a great place to browse some more male orientated gifts come and see what On The Wall has to offer!

This a great place if you’re looking to buy someone a gift — especially if it’s for a man, as there are lots of film and music posters as well as interesting art work. You can also get your posters framed wich is always a classy touch. The art prints feature well known artist like Warhol, Van Gogh and Klimt as well as more recent artists. They also sell amazing vintage metal signs featuring an array of kitsch retro prints and comic book characters. Other paraphernalia includes badges, t-​shirts, postcards, patches and calanders. I think that everything is priced fairly and finished to a high quality. I find this shop to be very inspiring and a pleasure to browse around.

For a while I’d walk past On The Wall thinking ‘Oh how I jolly hate those shops that try to be all arty and swanky flogging Andy Warhol-​style canvas prints, and fail miserably!’ But I recently managed to drag my preconceptions reluctantly over the threshold and check it out. I admit it’s not as bad as I’d expected.
Among all the painfully obvious rock-​related artwork there are some interesting illustration prints and pretty vintage posters. There is such a variety of different posters and prints, that if searching for gifts you are bound to find something to suit any taste. And Jonny is spot on with the ‘present for your dad’ comment… I was thinking about my dad’s approaching birthday as I flicked through the prints!
They also sell wrapping paper, greetings cards (including some of the pleasant and amusing black and white photograph without annoying ‘hilarious’quip kind) pin-​badges, band t-​shirts and a range of chunky belt buckles of various designs. The shop is spacious and minimalist in décor and provides a calm and pleasant environment in which to browse.

I really liked walking past On the Wall and thinking I hadn’t seen a shop like it in a while. First I liked that it’s name and branding was a nice little reference to the Michael Jackson album Off the Wall. I have a love of prints, be they album covers, or Andy Warhol type shots, or a snapshot of the latest Banksy. I also have a newfound thing for canvas art, so this definitely made me a little giddy on the inside. There’s a large selection of movie posters, icons, album covers, landscapes, cartoon characters and general scenes and graphics that just look cool. For prints prices can start at the £8 mark, and move up to £60 for a large canvas. There’s a healthy selection to look at in a variety of sizes and dimensions, and if prints and canvas don’t completely do it for you, maybe the vintage style metal signs will. I heart them, there’s something I find to be rather cool with metal signs and they make me giddy with their tactile 3D-​ness. If they don’t do it for you still, there are album cover t– shirts and t-​shirts with funny slogans on them and the sort, there’s also a nice selection of funny cards that you won’t find in places like Clintons or Card Warehouse. Prices for these lovely things run a little higher than high street competitors, but one could argue that it’s the variety of the product that warrants the price.

I’m really not sure about these shops. Alright, some of the stuff (think posters, canvasses, signed photos, rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia) is absolutely brilliant. I’d have it on the walls of my front room. But there’s just something about buying a big canvas of the Sex Pistols, or Jimi Hendrix, or The Who, that doesn’t quite work for me?
But if it is your thing, then you can’t really go wrong taking a wander in here. There is an impressive selection of music biz canvasses, to suit a variety of tastes. It’s the sort of place you’d go for a present for your dad. Or if you owned a music-​themed pub — On the Wall would certainly be able to do the décor.
As well as the music stuff, there’s a lot of ‘funny’ cards and drinking memorabilia. Like Jack Daniels? Why don’t you get yourself an A3-​sized aluminium version of the logo? Like that idea? Go here.