Begin street painting? (5)
I believe the answer is:
start
'begin' is the definition.
(I know that begin can be written as start)
'street painting?' is the wordplay.
'street' becomes 'st' (abbreviation).
'painting?' becomes 'art' (painting is an art).
'st'+'art'='START'
(Other definitions for start that I've seen before include "lead" , "Commence" , "Set in motion" , "get under way" , "begin an argument?" .)