Bright, bold, and detailed, much of the Central and South American street art that I have seen appear to be quite elaborate. This is the third in a series of collaborative posts on street art around the world. The first was European Street Art followed by Canadian and American Street Art. What I find most interesting so far are the similarities.
Take a look and see if you agree. The first is one I shot myself in Cartagena, Colombia and most of the rest are from other travel bloggers.
This is a small section of a wall filled with mostly black and white street art in Cartagena’s old town. With only one day to explore the city, we didn’t have time to find much South American street art. See more at Highlights of Cartagena Colombia in a Day.
There’s a saying, “There’s no white walls in Ecuador.” We found that to be particularly true in Otavalo, a traditional community known for its Saturday trading market.
Photo contributed by Lance and Laura of Travel Addicts. See more at Ecuador Graffiti: Street Art Expressions
You find incredible works of art on the streets of Cuenca, Ecuador. The city has actually commissioned many pieces and allows specific areas for street artists, so you can actually watch painters working in the middle of the day, instead of under the cover of night.
Photo contributed by Sean Boyle of Venturists. See more at Cuenca Street Art
Go ahead, try to follow a path through it. No idea how long it took to paint this AND keep everything straight… If you’re in Lima, start at the Museo de la Electricidad (Electricity Museum) in the Barranco district, then proceed to the Parque de Barranco, and along the streets Pedro de Osma, 28 de Julio, Jiron Union, and Jiron 2 de Mayo for the most graffiti laden streets
Photo contributed by Chris Backe of One Weird Globe
Nicaragua is not the hotbed of street art in Central America, however, there is one mural which should be credited in Leon. This political street art story takes you through the passage of time displaying the main events in Nicaragua’s history, concluding in utopia – children skipping into the distance with an iconic volcano in the background. We were introduced to this street art during the revolution tour. Personally, I think this tour is one of the top things to do in Leon. There is also a pretty funny rendition of London’s Banksy, which we found on the backstreets of the city.
Photo contributed by Two Scots Abroad.
Bogota has some of the world’s most striking street art; this is a city where graffiti is not illegal, and artists compete with each other to fill every available space with weird and wonderful designs.
Photo contributed by Will Hatton of The Broke Backpacker. See more at Backpacking in Colombia.
Valparaiso in Chile is not only famous for its unique old houses, clustered on steep hills, overlooking the port. During the last decade, the World Heritage listed city has gained international reputation as a hotspot for street art. Everywhere you turn you find excellent works of colorful art on public walls; from intricate, very detailed, almost whimsical pieces to very bold graffiti covering large, previously barren walls. You can see a lot of street art when you join one of the walking tours. Dare2go has created a self-guided street art walk, which takes the visitor past many excellent pieces along the fringe of the town center – not covered by city tours.
Photo contributed by Juergen of Dare2go.
I finally made it here, and took this shot along with many others. See the best of my Valpo street art here.
Several internationally renowned street artists come from Brazil. The medium is well recognized as part of the design world. Hence, it comes as no surprise that, as part of the Design Biennial in Florinanopolis in 2015, a long road overpass near the airport was transformed by a group of over 30 street artists. They turned a previously unsightly gray concrete structure into an explosion of color and styles. It’s well worth a visit (or at least a stop on the way from/to the airport) if you are interested in different styles of contemporary street art in one very compact space.
Photo contributed by Juergen of Dare2go. See more at An Explosion of Colour Instead of Dull Grey Concrete.
The Street Around the World series includes:
Five World Regions
- Asia
- New Zealand and Australia
- Europe
- Canada and the United States
- Central and South America
Two Artistic Expressions
Did you find this Central and South American street art to be somewhat more elaborate than other street art you have seen?
If you enjoyed this Central and South American Street Art, please share the article on social media, including Pinterest:
Secret Prohibition Room in Sir Francis Drake Hotel, San Francisco
Lekha Chellani
These murals are stunning. I remember visiting Wynwood Walls in Miami and looking at such beautiful wall art. Your post reminded me of those pieces and having them around in the city must be so cool!
Anne
Those are really beautiful. I am guessing by the intricacy that they took a long time to carry out which tells me they were made with the support of the local towns/cities?
Rhonda Albom
I would imagine so, but I have no idea.
Ting at MTM
What amazing street art #MondayEscapes
Rhonda Albom
I was pretty impressed with what was sent in too.
Elizabeth
What beautiful street art!
Rhonda Albom
I agree. I am impressed by so much art around the world.
Kristy Life-n-reflection
What a unique texture happening on that carved maze!
Rhonda Albom
The blogger who sent that one in always finds the most unusual things.
Mother of 3
Wow! What amazing examples of street art. They are so beautiful and moving.
Rhonda Albom
I can’t wait to visit South America.
Jeanna
Your shot I found to be more elaborate but the others with vibrant and political themes I thought had a commonality with other great street art. I love that you’re doing this, did I mention that already?
Rhonda Albom
The entire wall we found in Cartagena was elaborate like that.
Lisa @ LTTL
These posts have been so interesting. To see the similarities yet the differences is intriguing.
Lisa @ Life Thru the Lens
Rhonda Albom
I think that is why I am having so much fun pulling them together.
Isabel
Amazing street art recap!! I’m a fan!
Rhonda Albom
There is still more to come in the series.
Gemma Armit
I hear lots about Chile street art – another place to add to my list! Thanks for featuring us.
Rhonda Albom
I am looking forward to several months in South America next year.
Diana
There is a lot of great street art in South America, I love the ones you highlighted!
Rhonda Albom
Thanks. I can’t really take too much credit for the selection, as most of it was sent in by other travel bloggers.
Juergen | dare2go.com
This turned out great! I’m glad to have been part of this. Funnily: in both cases you picked the photo I wasn’t so sure about.
Rhonda Albom
Thanks Juergen. We all have different taste, but my favorite of all that you showed me were the support columns. I think it was their difference from other things out there.
Comedy Plus
Some of this is pretty cool. Some not so much.
Have a fabulous day. ☺
Rhonda Albom
I like it all 🙂
Alex J. Cavanaugh
It’s just so original. You wouldn’t see anything like it in an art gallery. Like the one of the rockin’ dragon with his tail continued on the building behind.
Rhonda Albom
Very true, but I wonder why modern galleries don’t include it.
Lexa Cain
South American art seems to be brighter and more expressionistic than north American art. I love that Chinese dragon and all the colors in it! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Rhonda Albom
I love the bright colors too. I can’t wait to visit next year.
Van @ Snow in Tromso
South America really seems to be the hot spot for street art right now. I’ve seen so many beautiful pieces from Chile all over the blogosphere lately that I’m really tempted to visit the country myself!
Rhonda Albom
LOL – me too. In fact, I am planning for South America early next year.
Lyn - A Hole in my Shoe
Rhonda these are amazing, I just love street art and unfortunately haven’t been to any of the places you featured. I am so drawn to the Ecuador and Chile pictures as I’m a huge fan of colour. Perth has it’s fair share of vibrant and intriguing street art and I love photographing it. Great post.
Rhonda Albom
I haven’t been to many of them either, only Cartagena Colombia. I am also drawn to the Ecuador photos and plan to visit there next year.
Hilary
Hi Rhonda – love those works … and what a great idea these books are – your Auckland one looks especially good … congratulations on tying up with this series … cheers Hilary
Rhonda Albom
Thanks Hilary, and wish I could take credit for the book idea, but I cannot.
Amila @Leisure and Me
These are really creative art pieces.I always find it interesting to watch street arts on the way…
Rhonda Albom
Me too. I am so impressed that people can paint things so large, and be able to visualize the outcome, and then achieve it.