The Valparaíso Graffiti Tour (Written by Tyler Mitchell)

Our first morning in Valparaíso was cloudy and at a temperature of 64 degrees. The bus ride to the graffiti tour was beautiful as we were driving alongside the Pacific Ocean observing the beaches and port. When we got off the bus it started to rain but that did not stop the group and Christopher, our guide, from starting the tour.

Christopher is a native of Valparaíso. He grew up fooling around with many of the famous artists who have painted the walls of Valparaíso. He came to the United States to study international business at San Diego University. After Christopher finished school, he said, "I needed to come back because he missed the culture, art, food, and family." Upon his arrival, he decided to use his artistic abilities to paint the walls of Valparaíso. Unfortunately, we were not able to see his work as it was in another area of the city.

Christopher is Showing the Group the 43 Hills of Valparaíso from the Port 

The tour started at the port of Valparaíso. It was discovered in 1536 and became the first port for the Europeans before the Panama Canal. This caused a migration of Europeans in the mid 1500’s. Most of the architecture was influenced by Europeans as they were some of the first people to take over the land. 

The Valparaíso Port (The first port in Chile)

The houses of Valparaíso are painted in different colors so the sailors could see their houses from the water. Christopher also said it was so they could locate their homes because there were no street names at the time. Valparaíso is divided into 43 hills all overpopulated by many colorful homes. The tourists and the citizens use cable cars to get around in the city and ascensor’s to get up and down the hills.

The Colorful Homes of Valparaíso

The View from Looking up at the Ascensor’s

During the beginning of the 2000’s there were architects that wanted to tear down the older buildings and put up typical square structures. The Chilean people were angry by these acquisitions and got enough signatures to keep the original buildings and refurbish them.

It was such an awesome experience driving up in the ascensor. The ascensor became very steep as it rose and I could tell some students were scared by the looks on their faces. Student Andrew Nolan said “I’m not scared your scared.” Once we got to the top of the hill, there was a beautiful landscape in which all the students started taking pictures. We found out from our tour guide that instead of saying “cheese” like we do in the United States, the Chileans says “whiskey.” 

Group Photo at the Top of a Valparaíso Hill

We were asked the question by our tour guide, “what is the difference between street art and graffiti?” While all the students had different thoughts, the main difference is the legality of the art. The one code that the city has is for everyone to respect everyone’s work.

Many of the young Chileans that were spray painting illegally and running from the cops during their youth, turned into famous street artists in Valparaíso. It was really interesting hearing the stories behind many of the famous street artists in the city. It made it even more interesting as our tour guide is really good friends with most of the famous artists in the Valparaíso. Unfortunately, not many of these artists are compensated for their work, so many have other jobs on the side.

For example, an artist named Inti Castro, got in legal trouble a lot during his youth. He started being recognized for his talent by the local home owners and was asked to paint some walls. A designer for Louis Vuitton was walking the streets of Valparaíso and noticed Castro’s art and asked to see him. Castro is now living in Paris as a Louis Vuitton designer. 

Photo of Inti Castro's Work (Valparaíso Native and Louis Vuitton Designer)

Companies like Adidas, Nike, and Converse have Sponsored Street Art in Valparaíso. Adidas Sponsored the Street Art in this Photo.

This Beautiful Street Art was Sponsored by a Brown University Student.

All the students then went into a famous candy store called La Dulceria where we watched the workers make the candy. Once they brought out some free samples, we all loved them and bought some packages as well.

Since all the walls are made with different architecture and sizes, all the artists must adapt, making every different painting unique. As a group we went to an area of the town that is very important to the Chilean people. The city of Valparaiso was known as a city of hippies because of how the streets were filled with artists, musicians, and poets. An artist decided to paint two large steps saying, “We are not hippies, we are happies.” He wanted to show the tourists that just because they are artists and musicians, it didn’t mean that they are hippies. He wanted to represent that the Chileans in Valparaiso are happy and proud of their city for their famous street art.

Symbolic Valparaíso Street Art

Valparaíso, Santiago, and San Paola are the finest cities around the world for street art. We were lucky enough to experience this art by a tour guide who has painted many of the works himself. Even though it was rainy and chilly, it did not take away from the beautiful art, colors, homes, and culture that we had the pleasure of experiencing.

 Group Photo in Front of Street Art

The Tour Always has a Dog that Follows the Tour

 Group Photo in Front of the “We are not hippies, we are happies” Street Art