Anim’Arte NAM VAN, jointly developed by the Macao Government Tourism Office, the Cultural Affairs Bureau, the Sports Bureau and the Institute for Tourism Studies, under the Secretariat for Social Affairs and Culture of Macao SAR Government, has now become the city’s new landmark of leisure and entertainment. The graffiti display area at Anim’Arte NAM VAN has recently changed its appearance, showing a new graffiti mural themed “maritime adventure” open to the public.
The Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) has been inviting local artists to exhibit their talents on the Anim’Arte NAM VAN graffiti display area since 2016. This time, IC has collaborated with two graffiti artists, Nicolás Sanchez Alfalfa from Uruguay and local talent PIBG, to spice up the cultural and creative atmosphere of Anim’Arte NAM VAN with a brand new graffiti art exhibit.
Nicolás Sanchez Alfalfa, born in Venezuela in 1983, has resided in various countries including Colombia, Argentina, Bolivia, Poland, United States, Germany, Spain and Austria, and his life experiences have left their mark on his graffiti. He is known for sketching large-scale graffiti murals using black lines of different thicknesses to produce a captivating three-dimensional visual effect. His works present his personal interpretation of the inherent nature of the human being alluding to supernatural myths with a dynamic touch.
Local artist PIBG has been a street graffiti artist since the late-90s and has showcased his works in more than ten group exhibitions in various countries and regions since 2000, including Mainland China, Australia, Thailand, United Kingdom, France, Hong Kong and Taiwan. In 2004 he founded Macao’s first graffiti art group GANTZ5, which is also one of the most influential groups in the contemporary graffiti scene in China.
Based on the uniqueness of Macao as a hub of Sino-Western cultural exchange, the graffiti collaboration presents the maritime history of China and the West through the common language of “graffiti art” whilst integrating the artists’ own cultural backgrounds and experiences. In this collaboration IC aims to use graffiti art as a means of communication and encourages the public to explore the mystery of how Chinese and Western cultures can embrace each other in the city. In the future, IC will continue to make use of the graffiti wall in Anim’Arte NAM VAN to promote graffiti art by forging further collaborations with different artists.