Viewing Lima from a distance, it would be easy to write it off as a dusty, dry metropolis tucked between the Andes and the Pacific. It’s poor, crowded, and overrun with motorcycle traffic, dogs, and bodegas. That’s all true.
It’s also a city that has given over its spare, concrete surfaces to anyone with an artistic bent and a will to paint under the blazing sun. Walk down any given street and you’re likely to skitter to a stop and admire the audacity of color.
Here are a few of our favorite places to enjoy Lima’s street art.
Barranco
First and foremost, Barranco is the neighborhood to explore. The neighborhood has made a concerted effort to encourage street art and uses it as a tourist draw.
Puente de los Suspiros, or Bridge of Sighs, is the ostensible landmark in this area. Personally, I’m not much for plain wooden bridges — even if they have a history and/or cultural remembrance. Instead, we spent our time hiking up and down narrow alleys around that attraction to take in the bougainvillea and art in equal measure.
There’s a high concentration of murals immediately around the local Plaza de Armas, so it’s hard to miss much. If you go further afield in Barranco, you’re still likely to find someone’s work. And if not? The colorful doorways and architecture are interesting, too.
Miraflores
Miraflores is known for its cat-friendly parks, stunning views of the ocean, shops, and restaurants. There are also a number of stunning murals to be found along most of the neighborhood’s streets.
While the placement of these seem to be haphazard, I couldn’t believe that entire streets and multi-story murals just happened. In fact, I noticed that many of the works were tagged with Lima Mural. A little research showed that these are an active project meant to encourage the city’s artists. Go, Lima!
Callao
Out on the northern-most tip of Lima are the shipping docks, naval academy, Real Felipe Fortress, and a tiny enclave of mural bedecked streets. A few of these were done by Entes y Pessimo, an artistic duo who’ve moved their game beyond Lima to Europe, the United States, many Southern American countries, as well as corporations like Red Bull. Their colorful work tends to focus on native Peruvian peoples.
From my reading, they’ve opened a path for other Peruvian artists to pursue public art projects and gained more acceptance for the art form. I, for one, appreciate the many, colorful scenes. I even noticed a “graffiti school” along one street, but since we were with another couple I couldn’t go dashing down the lane to sign up. That would’ve been socially awkward, right?
Places of Business
Many proprietors, large and small, seem to make space for intimate mural projects. Among my favorites were the ones found at local breweries though the work was seldom about beer-related themes. You can often see these murals from the street, though don’t be shy about ducking in to see if there are more. Just expect to be told about the menu if you do.
While you can doubtless find murals throughout the whole of Lima, these neighborhoods offer a good shot at seeing some unique art. Happy hunting!