Street Art in Salamanca

Guest Post: Rob Howe is originally from the UK and has been living in Spain for the last 18 months. He is a Hispanophile and enjoys writing about his travels.

Street art in Salamanca, Spain

Salamanca was perhaps my favourite Spanish city, long before I’d ever been there. Just the name, Salamanca, those flat rat-a-tat vowels conjuring up the most Castillian of cities. The image of a city where broad-hatted conquistador-types rode through the narrow cobbled streets on high-stepping horses while Salmentinos dozed in the Moorish plazas under orange trees fat with fruit.

A romantic notion, maybe, but once you’ve arrived in the city, you realise that, if anything, you’ve under-romaticised it. To walk from the wonderfully restored Roman bridge up to the city’s old quarter is to pass through 2000 years of human architectural achievement.

From the Romanesque style of the ‘old’ Cathedral to the Gothic style of the adjoining ‘new’ one. From the elegant Renaissance style of the University buildings to the spectacular Plaza Mayor and its typical Baroque exuberance.

Plaza Mayor, Salamanca

If this isn’t enough, the majority of the buildings in the historic centre are built with ‘blonde’ sandstone from the nearby quarries at Villamayor.

Not for nothing is Salamanca known as the ‘Golden City.’ When the sun hits the city, as it frequently does, the buildings glow with a deep honey-coloured warmth.

In 1988, UNESCO recognised its worth and endowed Salamanca with World Heritage status. Now, a million visitors a year come to visit, and it is rightly considered an essential stop on any Spanish tour.

architeecture in old town of Salamanca

But what happens behind these classical renaissance facades and gothic flying buttresses?

Quite often, behind every Cinderella city, there’s an ugly sister. Push out past the Gothic into the suburbs of Prague, for example, or to the outer arrondisiments of Paris, and there’s a tendency to find dour, tired apartment blocks, uninspired living spaces and a general degree of industrial 20th century decay.

In this respect, Salamanca is no different. But, in 2013, the residents of Salamanca’s Barrio del Oeste (the western neighbourhood), decided to spruce things up a bit…

Street art in Salamanca, Spain

Revitalising local neighbourhoods

That summer, the Asociacion de Vecinos de Barrio del Oeste (ZOES) held a street art competition where, with the full permission of property owners and businesses, local street artists could come and express themselves.

The intention was to revitalise the neighbourhood by bringing the community together through art, and also to encourage hip new businesses, such as cafès or bookshops. Let’s not forget Salamanca is a university city (indeed, Salamanca was the first Western University to be granted that title by the then Pope in 1218). It’s easy to see the potential of a neighbourhood to reinvent itself into a hip and happening hangout for young people, when there’s 30,000 students here at any one time.

Street art sprawls across Salamanca in Spain

It can be quite surreal the moment you enter the Plaza del Oeste; the tree trunks covered in knitted sweaters, and knitted owls sit round-eyed in their branches. Disused telephone cabins are converted into street libraries, and old shopping trollies have been filled with earth and converted into an organic gardens for growing vegetables.

Walking the streets that radiate from the plaza, the overriding impression I had of the Barrio’s street art was that of pure unalduterated fun.

Sure, there are the overt political messages – a crazy cartoon zebra brays ‘I always knew democracy would be end up like this’ – but, in general, the Barrio simply provides a forum for artists to bring colour and light to the walls and garage doors.

There must have been hundreds of artists in the contest judging from the difference in style – from classical representations, to abstracts, to cartoons, to geometric patterns, it’s all here. No one artist seems to be represented more than once and the effect is a magnificent kaleidoscope of colour and imagination.

It’s probably best to let the art speak for itself.

Street art in Salamanca

Amazing street art in Salamanca, Spain

Colourful street art in Salamanaca

Street art in Salamanca city

Colourful buildings in Salamanca

Street art in Salamanca, Spain

Street art found in Salamanca

Over the course of a weekend, we probably spent just as much time walking the streets around the Plaza del Oeste, as we did in the historic centre itself.

It struck me how a city with such a classical heritage could reconcile itself with new modes of art expression, but Salamanca is a city where all such expressions can seemingly coexist in harmony.

From the bridges over the Tormes river (in particular, one Roman stone and one of 20th Century iron) to the wonderful collection in the art deco museum in the elegant Casa Lis, it appears that in terms of its art, Salamanca really is a city and a city.

Street art across building in Salamanca, Spain

Practical information

How to get there:

  • Renfe, Spain’s national railway company, operates high-speed AVE trains and regional trains to Salamanca from various cities including Madrid, Barcelona, and Valladolid.
  • The journey from Madrid to Salamanca by AVE train takes approximately 1.5 to 2 hours, making it one of the fastest and most convenient options. You can book in advance via the Trainline.com.
  • If you’d prefer to hire car, you can check prices and book via Rentalcars.com.

Where to stay: You can search for hotels in Salamanca via Booking.com

Are you planning a trip to Salamanca?

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13 Responses

  1. I’d definitely like to go one day – it sounds like Salamanca is a bit like Lecce in southern Italy – lots of baroque buildings built using local stone, and it looks great in the almost constant sunshine.

  2. Finding street art in new cities is one of my favorite past times! It’s like an adult version of a treasure hunt. I’ve never been to Salamanca but will put it on my list. My favorite places for street art so far are Berlin and Shanghai. Have you been?

    -Shannon

    1. Hi Shannon! Finding street art is one of my favourite past times in a new city too! I completely agree with you about Berlin, I don’t think anywhere comes close to the abundance of street art you’ll find in that city – though other city’s are accelerating at a fast speed so this might well change! Cities in Poland spring to mind, and Lisbon is pretty incredible too.

      Really surprised to hear you say that about Shanghai, I’ve been but quite a few years ago now. Have you written about the street art? If so I’d love to see it!

    1. Apparently the street art is very new in town so that might explain why you may not have seen a great amount when you were there Sarah! So I think another visit is in order… with me in tow 😉

  3. Such cool street artworks! I love them. Definitely want to go to Salamanca now that I’ve seen this; I bet the rest of the city must be just as arty!

  4. Hi. A guy from Salamanca here. Couple of notes.
    The correct name for those original from Salamanca is “Salmantino” not “Salmentino”
    Second one, the river that the bridges cross is not the Duero but the Tormes (big difference) and by the way there are a total of 5 bridges (counting the Roman one that can only crossed on feet and the no longer in use, rail one that used to connect one of the most beautiful routes on train between Spain and Portugal).

    1. Oops, sorry, I didn’t see this. Yes, I have a colleague too from Salamanca – he pointed out the same mistakes. My apologies – all mistakes were completely mine!

  5. can anyone give me areas in Salamanca to photograph street art, or is there a company who run car tours around the city like in Lisbon. Urgent!! John

    1. Hi John – I’m the guy that wrote the piece above. The Barrio del Oeste (the East Neighbourhood) is about a 10-minute walk from the centre. The Plaza del Oeste is like the hub of a wheel – all the streets that radiate from it will be full of artworks. You can pass a couple of hours mooching up and down quite easily.

      You don’t need a car. Salamanca isn’t very big. If you’re particularly lazy(!) then hiring a bike would be good. The cycling infrastructure is excellent. But, in my opinion, walking is the best option. Nothing is very distant. The city centre is small and compact and even the Roman and Iron bridges are only 10-15 minutes walk down the hill. Feel free to email me if you have any questions. A more comprehensive set of pics from my trip can be found on my Flickr – http://www.flickr.com/sergeantpluck. Regards, Rob.

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