Tag: public art

Postcard from San Miguel de Allende: Redirecting Graffiti Artists, Part Three

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Part One

Part Two

The murals completed during this past year as part of Muros en Blanco have altered the appearance of the neighborhood, increased the sense of shared community and possibly changed the lives of some of participating youths.

Tourists traditionally have remained in the Centro Historico of San Miguel de Allende or ventured only as far out as Fabrica la Aurora. Some of them now stroll into the heart of Colonia Guadalupe in search of the murals and studios of artists working in the neighborhood. The dining rooms of Via Organica are packed.

And, most importantly, there is an added layer of communal interaction among expats living there and Mexicans whose families have resided in Colonia Guadalupe for generations.

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And more murals are on the way this month as part of the second festival. But this spring’s festival is about more than art. Part Four will be posted soon.

Postcard from San Miguel de Allende: Redirecting Grafitti Artists, Part Two

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(Link to Part One)

Blank walls are magnets for graffiti, but treating those walls as a canvas for public art projects commands respect even among taggers.

To try to halt the spread of random graffiti and alter the urban landscape, Colleen Sorenson joined with Federico Vega to launch Muros en Blanco in San Miguel de Allende. They met with city leaders, including Mayor Mauricio Trejo Pureco, and convinced them to establish Colonia Guadalupe as the city’s first arts district.

Enthusiasm was so high, they were given virtually no time to throw together the new arts district’s first event and public art projects in March of 2013. First, the pair had to identify walls appropriate for the murals and obtain permission from property owners for the project. Then they turned to the internet to solicit lead artists from throughout Mexico and beyond – Germany, Argentina, the United States. The chosen artists were housed with neighbors, neighbors who also rose to the occasion to prepare potluck feasts spread out as buffets for the starving teams of artists who gathered for meals in Colleen’s patio. Youths of the community were given the opportunity to join and work under the tutelage of more experienced artists.

Here are some of the results:

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Look for more photos of murals in Colonia Guadalupe in Part Three.

 

Postcard from San Miguel: Belated Valentine

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Love, and guerilla art installations, can be fleeting.

This charming couple appeared on February 14.

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Then seemed ready to prematurely celebrate Martes de Carnaval on February 15.

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Only to vanish without a trace on February 16.

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