Intern Adventures: The Street Art of Marvila
With so many things to see and do in the centre of Lisbon it can be hard to imagine leaving those areas. However, with such a vibrant art scene in the city it is more than worth exploring all the galleries and murals that are slightly further afield. One area most known for this is Marvila, a neighbourhood in the east of the city that isn’t exactly on most visitors 'must-do list however for fans of street art it is a must see, with one of the largest collections of murals in the city.
You may be wondering why and how an area with not too much more than high rise apartment blocks and railway lines boasts such a collection of work. That is all thanks to the MURO Art festival that was held in 2017 as one of many events that took place due to Lisbon being named the Ibero-American City of Culture for that year. Due to the strong link between Portugal and Brazil a lot of the art has a distinctly latin American feel that worked off the theme ‘Past and Present’.
One of these pieces is a portrait of Amazon indigenous leader Raoni Metuktire by the Artist Eduardo Kobra. The piece can be found on Rua Alberto Jose Pessoa. Eduardo Kobra is a major player in the world street art scene, hailing from Sao Paulo, Brazil he began creating street art aged only 12 year olds. At first by tagging buildings which led to various arrests throughout his teenage years. Until one occasion when a judge, who was impressed by the quality of his work, sentenced him to paint a mural at a police station. It actually wasn’t until 2011 that he created his first piece outside of Brazil (a commissioned piece in Lyon, France) however Kobra has now painted over 3,000 murals on five different continents and remains a huge name in the global street art scene.
O Respeito Entre Povos is a piece by LS. A local writer, and part of the AK crew of Marvila, an art collective. This piece aims to call our attention to racial and religious discrimination around the world by showcasing a female face surrounded by a great diversity of colours.
As Marvila gains attention for its incredible art, the local urban art gallery has actually started hiring and training locals to give guided tours of the area to tourists! And whilst street art may not immediately affect the socio-economic future of the area it certainly doesn't hurt.
In my opinion the Marvila Murals are certainly worth the journey to get to, whilst a full map of the art is available online I would recommend going and discovering the area as you go. As a residential neighbourhood perched on top of a hill be sure to bring sunscreen, water and comfy shoes to make exploring that little bit easier. With so much street art around the city there's an endless amount of things to see and do both in the centre and further afield.
Written by Isla Neil