Kids & Dogs & Art

 

The mural Kids & Dogs mural we painted in Parramos last week was just one part in something that hopefully will become a substantial educational programme about (street) dogs. People in Guatemala have of course always had animals. But more and more rural communities are turning into urban centres and that requires a new attitude towards pets and domestic animals. Parramos is one of those towns were dozens if not hundreds of stray animals wander the streets, surviving on garbage, suffering hard lives and forming a nuisance for its human habitants. A few local women have taken on this huge task of taking care of them and are doing their best to have as many of these stray animals spay and neutered. But they can’t do it alone, neither is it just their responsibility.

With the organization I volunteer for, Unidos Para los Aninales, we have developed an activity book for children with lots of information and tips on how to take care of your dog, especially aimed at a Guatemalan target group with limited resources.

But we can do more. So I returned to Parramos to teach a workshop for eleven children age 7-11. Also participating in the workshop were Lupita, Griselda and another dog, all three of them live at the Municipality of Parramos. The children learned about who’s responsibility it is to take care of street dogs (everybody’s!), why sterilization and vaccination is so important and what food is good for dogs. The children got to classify some food samples (beneficial/poisonous) and after the activity the “good” food was shared with the dogs who were surprisingly uninterested!

Then it was time to paint. Each participant made a poster with a cat or dog. Some of them made two! It was such a fun morning, the kids didn’t want it to end. Of course, each child received a copy of our activity book Cómo Cuidar a mi Chucho. Hopefully to be repeated!

Many thanks to Amada from Parramos for setting this up and helping during the workshop, and the Municipality of Parramos for providing the space and PR. Especially thanks to Colour4Kids for sponsoring this project. 

 

Caring for stray dogs is a shared responsibility

 

Parramos, Chimaltenango, is a small but vibrant town in Guatemala that not so long ago wasn´t much more than a large village. Last week, I went there to paint a mural on the wall of a nursery school, right next to the city hall. It was as noisy as usual, much hotter than normal in November and the wall considerably larger than the measurements I had been given. It wasn’t 2 meters tall, but 2.70, quite a difference. Fortunately, the design was easy to adapt. We paint a border at the bottom and just continued the coloured lines in the background.

The mural not only brightens up the entire street but also hopes to convey an important message: the overpopulation of street dogs is a problem that can be solved together. “¡Juntos los cuidamos!”, it says: “Together we take care of them”, because children can also do their bit to care for pets. Taking responsibility together will hopefully lead to less so that they are not neglect, abuse and abandonment. On the right side we painted the logo of Unidos para los Animales, an organization that offers affordable sterilizations and with which I have been involved as a volunteer for years. In the text below the logo the public is encouraged not to dump their pets and to sterilize them. In short, to take responsibility for the dogs and cats in the community.

The kindergarteners certainly loved it! “They look just like real!”, they said of the puppies. “¡Qué chilero!”. Or in other words: super cool! The teachers and principals were also very pleased.

The request for this mural came from a group of women from Parramos who, on their own initiative, trap stray dogs, have them sterilized and release them again, if no home can be found for them. Sending the dogs back into the streets is always heartbreaking, but unfortunately often the only option. In any case, they will no longer contribute to the growth of the dog population on the streets. No more unwanted puppies!

With the mural finished, I just want to  give big thank you to Esmeralda and Amada for this opportunity and for coordinating the logistics. Thanks to the staff of the kindergarten, the students for their support, the Municipality of Parramos, as well as their photographer Cristian. Also thanks to Diana Hernández and Gaby Rodriguez for helping me paint and Flori and Luis Velasquez who were so kind to offer transportation, the first and last day. And of course a big shout out to Dutch Foundation Colour4Kids for sponsoring this mural!

But! This project isn’t quite finished yet! Tomorrow I’ll return to Parramos for an art workshop about doggie welfare. Stay tuned!

Social Inclusion in Guatemala Part 2

 

Up before dawn and on the road at 5am. The things we do for the arts! Also to beat the blazing sun later on, as well as the traffic. Although, driving in the pre-dawn dark wasn’t much fun. Plenty of traffic already with many cars outfitted like Christmas trees. In Guatemala there is no middle way: people drive without any lights at all, or they pimp their vehicles till they look like the tandem bicycle in Men in Black II.

We made it to San Martín Jilotepeque and at 6.30am on the dot we were at work. As soon as we got out of the car, we were warmly greeted by two street dogs who stuck with us during the day. Despite of their heartwarming hugs, it was COLD! Something like 12°C. But we knew it wouldn’t last for long. An indeed, as soon as the sun made it over the mountain tops and then over the buildings in our street, it was HOT. From 12°C to 28°C in two hours’ time, WOW!

We were back in San Martín Jilotepeque to finish the mural we had started last month. It wasn’t an awful lot of work, but the details that were pending were important ones. Such as the name of the school and the symbols that represent different special needs. Now it’s all done and finally the mural, with social inclusion as a theme, makes sense!

It won’t be our last time in San Martín Jilotepeque. With the Dutch Foundation Colour4Kids we’re still raising funds for the construction of a second level for this school for children with special needs. Another level means more walls, so hopefully more paint projects in the future!

This mural is sponsored by Colour4Kids. Many thanks to Catherine Corry for driving (again!) as well as doing a terrific paint job. And thanks to our friend Cristy Velasco who brought us coffee and her delicious carrot cake.

Social Inclusion in Guatemala

It was cold, that chilly kind of cold before the sun announces its appearance with bleak streaks of light. Dressed in sweaters and scarves, our all-girl team of four set out for San Martín Jilotepeque. We left this early to beat the traffic and to have an early start because we knew we had a long day ahead of us.

The wall at the Escuela de Educación Especial (School for children with special needs) was ready for us. The cinder block wall was neatly stuccoed and ready for some colour. In accordance with the director of the school, I had made a design about social inclusion with a focus on respect and acceptance, something that persons with special needs still struggle with in rural Guatemala.

It was a tough job! Despite January being the coldest month of the year, the heat was relentless. The white wall reflected the fierce sunlight and heavy traffic was thundering along, right behind our backs. The cones that the friendly traffic police had placed on the road helped a bit to keep us safe but didn’t do much for the exhaustion fumes. It was so bad, we all opted for a facemask, despite the heat! And to top it off, some workmen started opening the road right next to our wall. The noise, the heat, the dust and dirt made it a tough day’s work.

The next day we left even earlier. Sunrise over the mountains of San Martín Jilotepeque was a treat. It felt as if the temperature had slightly dropped and even the traffic seemed to have slowed down a bit. Ten more hours of painting and the wall was completely covered in paint. But alas, we couldn’t finish it completely. Some very important details still need to be painted, such as the name of the school and the symbols for the different abilities that go on the blue squares at the top. I also want to paint the small part at the very right of the wall. So, I’ll have to go back.

Going back to San Martín Jilotepeque was in the planning anyway, because with the Dutch foundation Colour4Kids we’re fundraising towards the construction of a much needed second level at the school. As soon as we’ll have raised the needed funds (donations are very welcome!), the construction can get started. The first thing to be built is a ramp leading to the first floor. In order to do so, the outside wall will be raised a bit and this part needs to be painted too, so I’m going back no matter what. Hopefully sooner rather than later!

This mural would not have been possible without the help of Catherine Corry, Gaby Rodriguez and Diana Hernández, my fantastic painting crew. Thanks also to Elmer Hernández Lara, director of the school for helping with the logistics and the parents who volunteered to stucco the wall. Thanks to Cristy Velasco for the delicious lunch and snacks. And of course, a big shout-out to Colour4Kids for sponsoring this mural.

To be continued!

 

You can’t have enough colour on a wall!

 

Blazing sun, tuc-tucs, school kids, roaring motorbikes, street vendors, debt collectors, drunkards, goats, housewives, workmen, more kids, fire truck, stray dogs in all shapes and sizes… To say the street leading to the Vista Hermosa neighbourhood is busy, is an understatement… This was community mural painting at its best, with children who gave a willing helping hand, lots of appreciative feedback from neighbours, drinks being offered and happy teachers at the school we were painting at.

Little by little Vista Hermosa in Jocotenango, Guatemala, is being transformed from a dangerous and ugly barrio into a colourful, much cleaner and liveable community. Thanks to the UrbanHeART collective, an initiative from young people from this community, murals keep popping up. In November 2021 we painted a 12-meter-long mural at the public wash basin at the entrance of the neighbourhood. This year we continued the collaboration with Urban HeART with a workshop for a group of young painters and two murals, one at the side wall of the public wash basin, the other one at the wall of the kindergarten, along the street that leads into Vista Hermosa. The surface was a bit rough, but the dimensions nice and big (26 meter long!) and also very public. It was a pleasure to work with Denilson Larios and Gustavo Illescas of Urban HeART!

This project (the two murals and the workshop) was sponsored by the Dutch Foundation Colour4Kids.

After School Fun

I like nothing better than when you meet someone on Friday to discuss a possible mural and the very next Monday the mural is up on the wall already! That happened when I met Lynn who is setting up an after school literacy program in San Lorenzo El Cubo, a small town not too far from Antigua Guatemala. We quickly agreed on the design and I happened to have time to go paint the next Monday, so here it is!

The program  (ALAS, in collaboration with FFF Finding Freedom Through Friendship) officially starts today, so the timing was perfect. Congratulations and good luck with the project!

Mural 6.75 x 2.75m

Agua es vida, Water is Life…

 

In November 2021, I painted water in many of its facets on a 12-meter-long wall along the public wash basin in Vista Hermosa, a neighbourhood in the town of Jocotenango, Guatemala. The young people who set it up and helped paint, are members of Urban HeART, a grassroots initiative to make their neighbourhood more liveable through cultural activities. The transformation is clearly visible after two years and the area has become considerably nicer and safer, not only because the neighbourhood looks more cheerful, but also because people are more united, are now proud of their community and keep the streets much cleaner.

Nevertheless, the living situation is still difficult and sometimes even dangerous. A second mural had to be postponed. First because of COVID, then because of serious death threats towards people in the community. Tragically, the brother of one of the Urban HeART leaders was killed and a week later another (ex) member. The night before we started painting, two brothers aged 14 and 18 were shot dead when leaving the local cinema. (These deaths are unrelated to the mural initiative. But unfortunately, this is the reality children and adolescents in this community have to face every day.)

But the kids from Urban HeART don't give up and still believe in art as an alternative to a future full of drugs, gangs and violence. And that's why we just keep painting!

This time around, we painted the side wall of the pila or public washing area. Although not very big (4 x 5 meter), It was a tough wall to deal with, made of adobe, quite deteriorated and with lots of damage. It had to plastered first, then primed, to be followed by a base colour. I painted two giant water birds (egrets), based on ancient illustrations from ancient Maya codices. My colleagues painted the background, combining spray paint with brush work. I varnished the birds, but not the background, so the difference between shiny and matte background helps the optical solution of seeing reflection on the water. (Unfortunately, hard to see on the photos.)

And while prepping the wall, I touched up the big mural there where it was somewhat damaged by moisture. Now everything looks like new again, just in time for the opening of the new soccer field right across the street. A little bit of colour can make a big difference!

 

This mural was made in collaboration with Urban HeART and sponsored by Dutch Foundation Colour4Kids.