A Retired Teacher in Mexico City: Another Edition of "Mexico City Street Art"

Sunday, August 13, 2023

Another Edition of "Mexico City Street Art"

It you have been following my blog, you know that I frequently do posts on the street art which I encounter during my wanderings around Mexico City. It is a city filled with street art. Although you will find it in trendier neighborhoods such as Condesa and Roma, it is often in ordinary working-class neighborhoods, such as the one where my husband lives, that you will find the most... bright splashes of color contrasting with the otherwise gritty environment. Last week, I took a long walk, mostly along the avenue known as Calzada San Juan de Aragón, and there was a treasure trove of street art, enough for two blog entries.

I began my walk in the neighborhood known as "Villa de Guadalupe" not far from the Basilica of Guadalupe and continued for about 2 miles back to Alejandro's house.

Given the neighborhood in which I was, it was not surprising to see an image of the Virgin of Guadalupe... although this one was quite crudely done, and almost looked as if it had been influenced by the cubist distortion of Picasso.

The caption next to the Virgin's image says, "Love and care for your neighbor as I have done with you."

The outer walls of schools are often painted with murals. These were on several neighboring schools...

An elementary school named after José María Morelos had a portrait of that hero of the Mexican War of Independence.

This long mural is filled with iconic images of Mexican culture. These include the pre-Hispanic "voladores" (who fly through the air from a tall pole to which their feet are tied), "lucha libre" wrestling masks, the snow-covered volcanoes, the Mexican flag, a Yaqui deer dancer, the portraits of the "big three" of Mexican mural painting (Orozco, Siqueiros and Rivera), the Floating Gardens of Xochimilco, the monarch butterfly sanctuaries, piñatas, a Day of the Dead "catrina" and Aztec warriors.