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| I call this photo - The Reading Room |
Over the years, there have
been several ‘authorised’ campaigns to paint murals on private and public buildings
on Isla Mujeres. Many of those frescos have survived the salty, humid weather, the
over-painting of graffiti artists, or removal for new construction projects.
This week’s blog is a remembrance of some of
the interesting ones that didn’t survive.
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| Malecón bollards were painted as flags |
When we first arrived, there
was a collection of ocean-themed murals painted on the malécon, running along
the eastern side of the island. There were turtles, fish, and other ocean
creatures.
As those paintings peeled or faded, the next municipal
administration repainted everything in a flag motif. Flags from the countries of the visitors to
Mexico. Canada, America, many European countries, Israel, and all of the
Latin American countries adorned the seawall bollards.
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| 2012 Spear Art - La Perla Hotel |
The three-story La Perla Hotel was partially damaged during hurricane Gilberto and was destroyed by hurricane Wilma in 2005.
It languished as a
crash pad for vagrants, an unsightly place littered with garbage and beer
bottles.
Arriving on Isla, Spear discovered the crumbling structure
and decided he would leave his mark there. For three wild days
working in a frenzy of creativity, he sprayed, splashed, dabbed, and
painted.
He crafted five large, animated portraits of friends on the south
walls of the damaged hotel rooms, and two more on the north end of the
structure.
About a month after his marathon of painting, the damaged La
Perla was knocked down and reduced to a pile of rubble. There are plans for a
new hotel in the same location.
Sometime in early 2014, an
image appeared inside an abandoned, roofless building located at the northern end
of the seldom-used municipal airport, near the entrance for the Malécon and the
Aguakan pumping station.
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| Inside a roofless Aguakan station |
The image stares with a question in her eyes. Perhaps
she is asking: why are you here inside this dank, derelict space?
Still
visible, the image is a faint ghost of the original.
Then, in the summer of 2014, a large group of artists arrived to embellish fourteen buildings in Centro. Almost
three years later, the majority are still visible, a little paler, but attractive.
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| 2014, at Gabriela Mistral Primary |
The black and white whale shark, swimming with a woman at the Tourism office
on Medina Avenue, was a victim of the hot afternoon sun and tropical storms. Flaking
and faded, it was replaced this year with a conglomeration of brightly-coloured
mythical figures.
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| One of our favourites - gone! |
In early 2015, a collection of birds, iguanas,
hermit crabs, whale sharks, turtles, fish, sharks, and jellyfish flowed along
three sides of the retaining wall where the seniors play volleyball. During a
tropical rainstorm late in October of that year, the wall crumbled, destroying
the striking artwork. The replacement wall is a plain, vanilla-white structure.
We miss the eye-catching images of our local wildlife.
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| Barbara Siebenlist mural, purchased Villa la Bella |
Another one of our favourite depictions of
ocean-going creatures was painted by artist Barbara Siebenlist on a wooden fence
at Antonio Fabre’s studio.
Curtis and Ashley Blogin, the owners of the Villa la
Bella Bed & Breakfast, fell in love with the artwork and quickly negotiated
to purchase the piece for their lobby. Safely sheltered from the rain and sun,
it’s a beautiful addition to a handsome facility.
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| Golf cart rental, mural on fencing |
There are other images tucked away behind
private walls or inside hotel courtyards waiting to be discovered. Many
businesses located in Centro are starting to capitalise on the interest of
visitors in the various murals, commissioning paintings for their lobbies,
rooftops, fences and buildings. It's an interesting and profitable spin-off of
outdoor art.
Now, if someone would start an island-wide mosaic
project. Mosaics are permanent and just as colourful.
Hasta Luego
Lynda, Lawrie, and Sparky
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