The first edition of CURA (Urban Art Circuit) Street Art Festival hit the streets of Belo Horizonte, Brazil on July 26th until August 6th 2017.
Belo Horizonte was named for its beautiful view of nearby mountains (Beautiful horizon). It is the third largest and the first planned modern city in Brazil. Belo Horizonte has countless dimensions to the city, and its touristic diversity attracts people from all over the world. The streets are knited with art, museums, theater, dance, music and literature, making the city standout as contemporary and culturally rich .
Brazilian graffiti art is considered among the most significant influences of a global urban art movement, and the the Street Art in Brazil is some of the best in the world. In March 2009, the Brazilian government passed law 706/07 which decriminalised street art and this has contributed to the flourishing street art scene.
So it makes sense to bring the urban art scene to Belo Horizonte. The CURA festival is literally a blank canvas for all the artists as this is the first time residents of the city have seen a street art festival.
Five national and international artists invited were; Thiago Mazza and Priscila Amoni (Belo Horizonte), The Acidum Project formed by Tereza Dequinta and Robézio Marqs ( Fortaleza) and Spanish artist Marina Capdevilla.
The Festival aims to transform the landscape of Belo Horizonte, rescuing the trajectory of urban art in the city and recognising its current dimension and strength in the country and in the world. The works will be done in large format on the blind sides of four buildings in the city centre of BH measuring 50 meters in height and 37 meters in width.
The selection of the walls was made from a visual cut: all four lateral sides will be simultaneously seen from Sapucaí street, making it the first street art viewpoint of the world! With future editions of CURA the viewpoint of Sapucaí street will grow with graffiti and art, transforming the street into an effervescent cultural corridor, with potential to equal the most charming, creative and interesting streets of the main cities of the world.
A few years ago, the Sapucaí Street was just a place with a beautiful view of the downtown skyline, whereas today it has a vibrant nightlife, offers excellent food choices, culture and now street art.
The festival also included an extensive cultural program with discussion panels about art, parties, an art bazar, film screenings and guided tour of the murals of Belo Horizonte.