Las Caras de la Ciclovía, #243, Mendoza, Argentina, 2022
“People say graffiti is ugly, irresponsible and childish… but that’s only if it’s done properly.”
Bicycling through an art gallery
This cycling artery, that runs for a number of kilometers through Mendoza City as well as several of its suburbs, is super popular. Not only do cyclists take advantage of the paved and designated trail, you will also find walkers, runners, skaters, and scooters out and about, and lots of other folks just chillin’ on a blanket in the nearby grass (drinking mate, of course).
Viewing the urban graffiti panels that have sprouted up on the walls along this ciclovía is like riding through a continuous outdoor museum of modern street art.
The idea occurred to me to document this art by focusing in on the many odd, crazy, monsterous, unique, and beautiful “faces” that I found along the way. Then, I would make a couple of posters that would show off this incredible variety of styles, motifs, and social commentary.
I tried to note the names/nicknames of the artists whenever possible (many signatures/tags were hard to read or non-existent) and have included them on the posters. I’m still investigating proper spellings and a number of missing names, so I’ll likely make corrections to the list in the near future.
Both measure 60cm x 90cm, or roughly 24″ x 35″ and the individual images were made with the small mirrorless camera, the Sony RX100ii.
A Note About the Artists
I sure wish all of these panels had been signed, and signed in a legible way. Some were, and some even included a Twitter, Instagram, or online account–but many, many more were unsigned or their tags were unreadable. Alas. There is some serious talent out there on the streets of Mendoza and it would be nice to give these artists the recognition they deserve.
[NOTE: For a look at Asfáltico, one of the more active groups of artists in this city, see my blog post, Asfáltico In Action, April 15, 2016.]
The posters
This first collection covers probably the most travelled portion of the Mendoza ciclovía, from the center of Mendoza Capital, south into the suburb of Godoy Cruz:
Las Caras de la Ciclovía Poster, #1, Mendoza, Argentina, 2022-2023
This second collection covers the section of the ciclovia from the Palmares shopping area in Godoy Cruz, south through the ‘burb of Chacras de Coria:
Las Caras de la Ciclovía Poster, #2, Mendoza, Argentina, 2022-2023
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