Maritime Murals of La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico

 

La Paz, the port city of Baja California Sur: In its waters, beaches, and mountains artists find the inspiration that leads them to create works of art to tell stories, myths and legends where the interconnection of local inhabitants and nature is the main protagonist.

Colorful murals in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico, display the cultural origins of the town, as well as the rich relationship with the sea: whale sharks, dolphins, sea lions, even coyotes, and fishermen. For many years, Jacques Cousteau researched and documented the Sea of Cortez around La Paz and called it the "aquarium of the world".

The creators of these often huge murals are artists from all over Mexico. Initiated in 2009, "Ciudad Mural" has now illustrated colorful local stories in more than 16 Mexican cities.

In recent years there has been a boom in murals throughout La Paz. One can discover about 50 murals in the city center alone.  In some of the murals, there are even small signs with the name of the artist, the painting, and a short description.  

With murals over 30 meters long, the city is full of color, which has been expanding to include the roads leading to the most emblematic beaches of La Paz.

There is even a virtual city walk offered to discover the murals downtown. 

Follow: #streetartlpz and @PureLaPaz

https://www.golapaz.com/

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Murals are popular all over Mexico

The Muralist Movement lasted approximately half a century, from the early 1920s to the 1970s - and still continues.  Through it, both the art and culture of Mexico were put at the service of society and the ideals of the Mexican Revolution. 

Muralist painters, many of whom were no strangers to political activism, used the walls of public buildings, palaces, universities, and libraries to tell both the story of the revolution and of the daily life of the people. 

The mural paintings defined the nation’s identity and recognized Mexico’s indigenous ancestry.  They documented the suffering of the indigenous at the hands of the Spanish conquistadores, while also recognizing Mexico’s shared history and culture. 

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The Mexican muralists influenced artists throughout the Americas, and some murals were painted in the United States, including the Epic of American Civilization by José Clemente Orozco at the Dartmouth College.

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However, there is more art to find in La Paz, the Malecon, a five-kilometer-long boardwalk with bicycle and roller skate lanes are more than a dozen impressive sculptures. Find them in the next blog.

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