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Urban Expressions: Street Art as a Voice of Colombian Culture

José Antonio Cárdenas Serrano

Laura Jeraldinne Talero López

Universidad Pedagógica Y Tecnológica de Colombia

English VII

Jonattan Mendez Gonzáles

September th 2023
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Street Art In Colombia

Street art in Colombia serves as a vibrant and dynamic reflection of the country's rich

cultural diversity, history, and social issues. Artists utilize various forms like graffiti, murals,

stencils, and posters in public spaces to convey their messages. These artworks address a

wide range of themes, from social justice struggles to the celebration of cultural identity.

Colombian street art frequently incorporates representations of the country's lush natural

landscapes, showcasing its diverse flora and fauna. This includes vibrant representations of

tropical rainforests, towering mountains, and rushing rivers, underscoring the importance of

biodiversity in Colombian culture.

Moreover, street art often acts as a platform for expressing resistance and protest. Many

murals confront topics such as violence, human rights, and the pursuit of peace, serving as a

visual reminder of Colombia's complex history, marked by armed conflicts and movements

of resistance.

Indigenous and Afro-Colombian culture serve as significant wellsprings of inspiration for

street artists in Colombia. Murals frequently pay tribute to the diverse ethnicities and their

traditions, celebrating the cultural and ethnic richness of the country.

Street art in Colombia exuberantly celebrates music, dance, and everyday life. Through vivid

colors and dynamic depictions, traditional dance and music are brought to life, conveying the

joy and festive spirit that are inherent to Colombian culture.

Colombian street art is a living canvas that captures the essence of the nation's multifaceted

culture, blending breathtaking natural beauty with narratives of social struggle and vibrant

artistic expression.

Popular culture in street art

Culture based on jokes and television programs is referred to as pop culture. This term

encompasses a wide range of cultural elements that are widely known and consumed by
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society, including television programs, movies, music, celebrities, as well as jokes and humor

designed in social networks.

In Colombia, this type of jokes are strongly accepted by young people and shared for

remembering good memories and past times, many children's television series are part of this

feeling of nostalgia especially the series that were shared by public television, since, for many

of the Colombian generations the access to satellite or cable television was really difficult

because of its cost or because the coverage of these services was not yet very well

consolidated by the television companies, hence many of the programs were of institutional

and educational character, starting from that point, it was decided to take as inspiration the

program "Profesor Super O" which has been broadcast from 2006 to the present.

The bienestarina power

Profesor Super O has long been recognized as part of Colombian culture. He has

helped to improve aspects of the Spanish language, healthy life and history. Each of the

episodes broadcasted on the national network is the clearest representation of the costumes,

food and atmosphere of the people and national environment, in addition, this iconic

character represents a broad Colombian generation which over the decades has been enjoying

this television and educational show making it an important part of the Colombian people's

sentimental memory.

Bienestarina is one of the supplements of high nutritional value for children in

Colombia, produced and distributed by the ICBF (Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar

Familiar) since 1976 and is strongly rooted in the Colombian culture, thanks to the Plan de

Alimentacion Escolar (PAE) which is given to young Colombians since 1955. according to

data shown by the ICBF in Colombia "81. 27% of children from 6 months to 5 years old,

infants with children from 0 to 5 months and pregnant women receive Bienestarina to prepare
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at home” (cartilla_bienestarina_2014.pdf, s. f.) This food is very iconic and well remembered

by the vast majority of people who consider it as part of the national culture.

The process behind “the bienestarina power”

In our lives, the Bienestarina and Profesor Super O were present as well as in most

Colombians' lives and we decided to create a piece of art mixing both iconics elements of the

traditional culture in our country, to represent that impact and share with people who feel the

same affection and appreciation for them.

For creating our design, we used two images free of copyright and/or usage

limitations from the internet “Dibujo 3D con Bisel y Relieve - Profesor Super O by Pedro

José Suárez Ramírez and Bienestarina bag image created by ICBF”; We looked for an app

able to edit both pictures and then we finished with changing the colors for creating our style.

The purpose is to painting at the university having the necessary permission to replace one of

the many unnecessary paintings made without purpose or coherence ( political purpose, crew

sings, etc..)
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References

Behance. (s. f.). Dibujo 3D con Bisel y Relieve—Profesor Super O.Behance. Recuperado 13

de septiembre de 2023, de https://www.behance.net/gallery/102032985/Dibujo-3D-

con-Bisel-y-Relieve-Profesor-Super-O/modules/587664557

Cartilla_bienestarina_2014.pdf. (s. f.). Recuperado 13 de septiembre de 2023, de

https://www.icbf.gov.co/sites/default/files/cartilla_bienestarina_2014.pdf

Bienestarina Más ®. (2020, junio 8). Portal ICBF - Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar

Familiar ICBF. https://www.icbf.gov.co/bienestarina-mas-r-0

El Programa de Alimentación Escolar: Robo de recursos a los más necesitados | Obssan. (s.

f.). Recuperado 16 de septiembre de 2023, de http://obssan.unal.edu.co/wordpress/el-

programa-de-alimentacion-escolar-robo-de-recursos-a-los-mas-necesitados/

Evaluacion_bienestarina.pdf. (s. f.). Recuperado 16 de septiembre de 2023, de

https://www.icbf.gov.co/sites/default/files/evaluacion_bienestarina.pdf