Learn about street art in Santiago and Valparaíso: six unmissable stops
By: Hernan Claro - 24 July, 2023
If you are one of those travelers who seeks to get to know and contemplate artistic expressions of every destination you visit, we will introduce you to the two main cities in Chile which stand out due to their neighborhoods which look like exterior galleries. We invite you to get to know the street art in Santiago and Valparaíso!
Santiago, capital of Chile and Valparaíso, World Heritage Site city, have always been sources of inspiration and expression for street art becoming nowadays an unmissable touristic attraction because of, particularly, its works painted on huge walls and the power of its thematic in which talented internationally renowned artists have left their trace in the country.
Although both cities offer dozens of tourist attractions, we will introduce you to the main neighborhoods where you can find, for free, the beauty of some Street Art in Santiago and Valparaíso. Let’s start the route!
The most outstanding street art in Santiago de Chile
- Franklin neighborhood (Barrio Brasil)
Our first recommendation if you are looking for street art in Santiago and Valparaíso, is the famous and picturesque Franklin neighborhood, located in the south of the Chilean capital.
In this historic and commercial neighborhood, you can find the famous persa Bíobío market, where some of the most attractive exhibitions of street art that you will find in the persa Víctor Manuel is shown off. Over the years, this neighborhood has become a cultural pole with concerts, fairs, and cultural events in its central plaza, surrounded by colored streets with spectacular walls and antiques.
You will find antiques and art everywhere in the Franklin neighborhood. Photo: @persavictormanuel
- Brasil neighborhood and Yungay (Barrio Brasil y Yungay)
Another neighborhood not to be missed in street art in Santiago and Valparaíso. Located a few steps from the center of Santiago, we point it out because of the architecture of its construction, which is still, on the whole, intact after several years of receiving protection from the National Monuments Board (its initials in Spanish CMN). Nowadays, its walls take in one of the most interesting and remarkable murals in the capital.
Mural located in Yungay Neighborhood, Santiago. Photo: @barrio_yungay
- Lastarria neighborhood and Bellas Artes (Barrio Lastarria and Bellas Artes)
At one side of Centro Cultural Gabriela Mistral (Gabriela Mistral Center (GAM), starts this little and lovely neighborhood, which historic monuments were built in, giving it great value: Bellas Artes Palace, the Posada del Corregidor, the Brunapalace, and the Vera Cruz church, a reason why it was declared a typical zone. You will be delighted by its street art!
Mural from Lastarria neighborhood, Santiago de Chile. Photo: @callelibrecl
Valparaíso and its spectacular corners to photograph
The city of Valparaíso is an unmissable destination if you visit Chile, even more if you are looking to get to know the street art in Santiago and Valparaíso, Concepción, Alegre and Bellavista hills being the epicenter of the street art.
- The Alegre Hill colors (Cerro Alegre)
If you like urban art, you must visit Alegre Hill, called that way because of the beautiful gardens in some of it houses.
Go up Almirante Montt Street and you will find one of the most meaningful murals in the city: it is ‘’La mami de Valparaíso’’, a little grandma who watches the city from the corner of a house, a work created by the French collective Ella & Pitr.
The Alegre Hill will delight you with its walls full of colors. Photo: @apuntesyviajes
- Piano stairway, one of the most photographed.
This beautiful stairway is in Beethoven passage on Concepcion Hill, next to Alegre Hill, and it is one of the most visited by the tourists. In its surroundings you will find more murals worthy of contemplation.
Stairway, Cerro Alegre, Valparaíso. Photo: @cuellargabriela
- Open-Air Museum on Bellavista hill (cerro Bellavista)
This open-air museum located on Bellavista hill, is populated with graffities, murals, paintings, and mosaics. Born in 1969, its mission was to beautify the appearance of the city. You will find works by Roberto Matta and Nemesio Antúnez, who were part of the rebirth of this place.
