The writing is on the wall

Scrawls cover walls all over the city, making Buenos Aires one of the best known centers for graffiti. A few from the neighborhood of San Telmo:



"Now is when."



"Art for art" (This one wasn't so hard to translate...)



"Against the coup in Honduras."

The writing is on the wall

"Burn all the prisons" (better in Spanish)



"Neither houses without people nor people without houses. No more evictions!

The writing is on the wall

"Celebrating 200 years of state crimes." (Argentina was founded in 1810).



"We're here to protect you."



"Uniforms deform men and make them go crazy."



"No to mandatory heterosexuality."



"If the earth shakes, no one will be able to save themselves."

The writing is on the wall

"I don't want your compliments, I want your respect."



"We have memory; we have future."



"Rural Society-- creator of poverty." Argentina's Rural Society, which groups large agriculture producers, has been criticized for hurting small farmers.




"Drink/ take conscience." ('Tomar' in Spanish means can mean both drink or take, so the original version is funnier).



"Love, light and truth."

Graffiti tour-- the city's top walls

A three-hour guided tour of Buenos' Aires best and brightest street art? I nearly fainted of excitement when I heard that such a gem existed. And I was not disapointed by the incredible creativity and spunk of the underground (or, better said, overwall) art scene plastered around Palermo neighborhood. I haven't been able to recall/find the names of each artist, so apologies for the lack of attribution. You'll just have to visit Argentina to find out.



A house painted by artist Gaulicho that is apparently up for sale. Hint.



Friendly giant and passenger.



Outside a new restaurant.



Compelling face, mix of genres.



Dog not painted.

Graffiti tour-- Urban pitfalls are my friends

Neither fences nor fuseboxes are barriers for street artists. To the contrary, I was amazed at how the artists are able to use urbanity to better their creations. A few exmaples:



Fishing on a street corner. Not sure about the comfort level, but this sweet piece is one of my favourites.



Gridlock.



Drawn tree mirrors real tree. Too cool.



Leopards and giraffes, oh my. But from the angle this picture is taken, they seem to be fenced-in zoo animals. Though of course, that's just faulty human viewpoint...



A rather rectangular robot.

Graffiti tour-- Let me spray a political statement

It's hard to understate how much Argentines love thrashing, praising or just merrily dissecting political life in their country. I was therefore a little surprised that the street art I saw wasn't fiercely opinionated. Granted, it's a little harder to convey a nuanced argument with a spray can (I think?). But here are a few of the themes that made it onto Palermo walls.



Poverty as a neighbor of this luxury store.



The anonymous prisoner.



Swines too need protection from their flu.



The 'Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo' are a group formed by women searching for their children disappeared during Argentina's military dictatorship. They cover their hair with scarves that often have the name of their child stitched on. These emblematic scarves are floating above a playground, seemingly still searching for their sons and daughters.

Graffiti tour-- The neon way of life

Colours are definitely not rationed on the streets of Buenos Aires.



Detail of Gaulicho's work.



Facade of artist's home. Yes, home.



Pink gallore.



Elephants cross the doorway.

Graffiti tour-- Argentine folklore revisited

Street art, for all its funky, futuristic vibes, hasn't entirely forgotten about Argentine icons.



Tango on the wall.



Gaucho and his horse... I mean, electric guitar.



Evita crowded in.

The writing is on the wall

"Struggling is how the people progress."



"To distances not existing." (Please offer a better translation if you have one).



"And you, what do you do?"

The writing is on the wall

"There is something of crazyness in love and reason in crazyness.



"The debt belongs to the state. But is payed by the people."



"Let's recover our earth."

The writing is on the wall

"No to marriage, gay or not." Last week, Argentina became the first Latin American country to allow gay marriage.



"For whom did they make prisons if the rich never enter and the poor never leave?"



"We keep going/ walking."



"Freedom for the street."



"Continue resisting!"

The writing is on the wall

"My life is valuable; my body has no price."



Viva El Che... he lives on. Please ignore what's written underneath.

The writing is on the wall

"No student imprisoned for fighting/ struggling."



Self-explanatory?



"Routine is the habit of renouncing to think."