The City of Mariestad has been climbing on the horizon as a city where art, creativity and sustainability are seen as aspects for vitalizing society for the last three years. From the unique blend of local community participation and invited international artists a formula has merged and will now be applied to three other cities in the region (Skovde, Gotene and
Lidkoping) in a project called Mural 2012. During the spring and early summer the project grows from a storytelling project into a vibrant mural project in four cities in West Sweden.

The municipal collaboration reaches from office of tourism to culture but it also affects city planning, employment-, education- and social offices. To take one such example it is the first time the libraries in the four cities work together in a program. Here the focus is on the quite young, 11-year olds are writing about life in their city and community. They will in the next step transform the texts to visual work on paper, and exhibit these in the main city libraries. The framework is shared by the cities however as the structure and capacity in the cities vary a flexibility encompassing this is built in to the process based concept.

The blog and the works on paper are then among the starting points for the artists as they move on into the murals. The international perspective and “fresh eyes” brings new light every day life conditions. The focus on public space provides the relevance of be working with Mexican Muralists/Street Artists.

The invited artists from both Sweden and Mexico are working side by side in the four cities. The Mexican and Swedish artist presents their skills in collaborate works in addition to help realizing the community murals. The murals are permanent and will remain the urban and rural landscapes for quite some time.

It is of importance to create an atmosphere where the artist do not only become servants of society but also feel that they can excel in their professions. One of the collective works is a 3d mural in the Marina in the City of Mariestad. Its the first time any of the crew members carry out such a mural. The work stretches from interventions to fullblown murals that will be part of the municipal art collections.

Caption: Cheke, Dano & Irene at freewall in Mariestad, Sweden

MEXICAN ARTISTS IN MURAL 2012:

OMAR IVAN MENDOZA AMARO
Lives in Michoacan, México
(Mexico City, 1980)

Graphic design degree in 2004.

Works at the Cultural Office in publication area making editorial design and ilustrator for some projects in the same area.

The last years have been studied etching techniques and his artwork has been selected in diferent exhibitions in Michoacan state and Mexico City.

He is making a street art Catalogue of Michoacan for a schoolarship with Michoacans Cultural Office and the National Council of Art and Culture, 2011.

http://bambuser.com/v/2610344#t=60s

GUILLERMINA ROMERO NERI
Lives in Michoacan, México
(Jacona, Michoacan, 1981)

Degree in Visual Arts at the Allende´s Institute, San Miguel Allende, Gto.University of Guanajuato, specializing in painting.
The topic of her artwork is human condition and naturals landscapes, in the techniques oil and acrylic basically, at big format. Her artwork has been selected for several exhibitions in Mexico, USA and Russia.
She works in different projects from creativity, drawing and painting for kids and adults in communities from zone around the Lake of Pátzcuaro. She teaches  classes: body human draw, painting techniques. She also works as coordinator of different professional workshops offered by various local and national artists at the Cultural Center Antiguo Colegio Jesuita in Pátzcuaro, Michoacán.

http://bambuser.com/v/2611142

IRENE GUTIERREZ AMESUCA
Lives in Querétaro, México
(1986)

Universidad Autónoma de Querétaro, visual arts and i specialized my self in graphic design

The main topic of her work is to gather the past, and old customs in México with the “new” emerging art (urban art, street art), in order to keep the connection between the ancient art and the graffiti, the old art techniques, for example the gold sheet, with spray can, an art syncretism. But most of all, to tear a part the wrong idea that the graffiti is a delinquent activity.

She promotes values of community and teamwork by focusing on recycling towards a feasible way of living in both culture and sports. She is also working as art teacher at Universidad Mesoamerica. of San Juan del Rio, Querétaro in the graphic design faculty.

http://bambuser.com/v/2610469

EZEQUIEL FRIAS, (aka CHEKE)
Lives in Querétaro, México
(1985)

Is a visual artist working with video, interventions, graffiti and mural.

Works made with beat-hearing,Colorimetric images in movement that explore the different forms of perception and projection of life, documenting audiovisually the thinking of the Mexican culture in the century.

Cheke offers a audiovisual art approach in murals, videos and drawings which try to discuss aesthetics studies as the grotesque, and create a dialogue with the viewer in which we discuss the issue of beautiful art and ugly art.

“I think that I have a mission to society: I like make a mix whit some Mexican elements (color, fauna, visual communication, folk partys, religion symbols, and calavera) and things that I think that we most fix in the society like pollution, bad communication, violence, globalization, fears, beautiful things an ugly things)” Cheke

http://bambuser.com/v/2611074

The aim is to present Mural 2012 in September as a candidate of European partnership in the cultural sector, this as a continuation of the collaboration between  Querétaro and West Sweden wih a special invitation to Michoacán.

For upcoming projects in 2013-15 we are looking for new project partners/municipals in Europe. Contact: annaviola@aviewnomadgallery.com

MURAL 2012 is part of the more than 10 year long relation between Västra Götaland & Querétaro. The project this year is also partnering up with Michoacán

Project funded by: