Street art is a freestanding art form that you can’t see in museums, art galleries, and exhibition centers. It is the folk art of the masses, where everyone is a nonconformist. This art is often bold, bright, controversial. But definitely, it attracts attention and, possibly, influences the mind and reality.

This is what happened in Medellín: an area with a dark past got a very bright future thanks to graffiti and paintings on the walls. Twenty years ago, it was better for a tourist to stay away from the neighborhood named Comuna 13. And locals tried to avoid this place or take loyal armed guards with them. Thieves, murderers, drug addicts – this was the usual contingent of that area in those years.

Today, people still go to Comuna 13 to get their nerves tickled but through an incredible aesthetic pleasure instead. In the middle of the 2000s, the city authorities decided to turn the tables. Comuna 13 was cleared from gangsters, mafia, drug addicts, and civilians received new homes, their houses were repaired. To make it easier for locals to move across the neighborhood, they installed 12 escalators here. And gradually, the area came alive.

People were no longer afraid to go out. Locals wanted to live in a beautiful place, and, gradually, Comuna 13 began to blossom with new colors. Graffiti and frescoes appeared on the walls of the houses. They were used to cover the bullet holes in the masonry.

Many drawings reflect the history of the area, tell about local heroes. Not only do local artists come to Comuna 13 to leave their mark, but artists from all over South America also create graffiti here. Comuna 13 hosts graffiti contests and festivals.

The neighborhood is still poor and not entirely safe. It is better to go here during the day and not stay until late. Despite the dark past, locals greet you with a smile, and children won’t miss the opportunity to practice the language.