Graffiti and murals of all shapes and colors play along the narrow, labyrinthine streets of Valparaíso. The entire port city may feel like a public art gallery, but the Open Air Museum offers a concentrated glimpse into the history of this local creative phenomenon. The urban art corridor was first inaugurated with public murals as part of a workshop for university students in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Located on the Cerro Bellavista near the Ascensor Espíritu Santo, the Museum is now made up of 20 murals in close proximity painted by renowned Chilean artists such as Matta and Antúnez and regularly maintained by art students.

Today the legacy of street art lives on among Chile’s youth. Inti Castro, an up-and-coming talent who has already gained international recognition, spilled his paints across the walls of Valparaíso once again earlier this year. The mural, titled “Kusillo,” is a vibrant representation of a traditional Andean character. It can be seen from the Mirador Paseo Atkinson and other look-out points on the Cerro Concepción. The dynamic art form which Inti and many others carry on today has evolved over the past several decades from a subversive political act to a lauded means of expression that has become an inextricable part of the city’s charm.

For more information on tourism, galleries, local artists and much more, visit Valparaíso’s official municipal website: http://www.ciudaddevalparaiso.cl/inicio/index.php