The favorite event for urban art lovers returns to Zaragoza: the Urban Art Assault Festival celebrates its 16th edition from October 28 to November 7, in this case in the Arrabal, a neighborhood with character and legacy, whose walls and public spaces will be filled with colors and messages.
What particularities does this edition have compared to previous years? "The context itself gives them," says Luis García, spokesman for the Assault Association Cultural Projects, also composed by Sergio Beltrán, Alfredo Martínez and Isabel Tris.
“This year we return to the historical case, on the left bank of the Ebro. El Arrabal is a neighborhood with many alleys, corners... that forces us to generate a more contextual work, taking space even more into account. There will not be large murals like in other editions that have been done in more industrial areas, it will be a smaller and more careful format, on a more human scale”.
Letsornot (Julián Martínez), one of the guests at Asalto.
Assault Festival returns to the Arrabal after a few editions "with the chip of the decentralization of culture", which it had taken them to more peripheral neighborhoods. "We wanted to go back to the historic center and in this area we had only intervened with three murals," they explain.
"In addition, the idea is part of a medium-term strategic plan: we want to extend along the left bank of the river, reaching another area of the city somewhat forgotten. Even attacking the riverbank again like we did years ago.” A great way to revitalize (and rediscover) Zaragoza from another point of view.
In this 2021 edition, Asalto brings artists such as Berni Puig, Dani Hache, Ekosaur, Letsornot, Maite Rosende, Mina Hamada and Olga de Dios. “In our line of taking illustrators out of their comfort zone, we have invited Asis Percales, an Andalusian resident of Barcelona who works with many brands, we are going to have a mural of hers, I think it will be one of the most attractive”, they comment.
“We could also point out the intervention of Nelio, one of the most internationally recognized artists, who is going to paint the neighborhood health center. He comes from pure and hard graffiti and he has evolved towards abstraction in ochre, earth tones... he has brutal sensitivity.”
NEIGHBOR LOOKING FOR ARTIST
"The participatory workshops are also making a comeback, generating connections between neighborhood associations or entities with artists who come to visit. They will be held with more capacity and for more days, we are going to refloat that little by little, ”says Luis.
Precisely, it was due to the pandemic that arose the project 15/15 Artist seeks neighbor, first in the neighborhood of San José and that continues in this edition. “Our usual process of connecting the neighborhood with the creators was not feasible due to the global situation. The circumstance also occurred that it was our 15th anniversary and it occurred to us to connect to fifteen Spanish-speaking international artists with fifteen people from the neighborhood”, Louis explains.
The very special experience was carried out via video call and welcomed with great enthusiasm by all parties. The idea? The neighbors told the artists about their experiences in the neighborhood and, As a result of the conversations, artistic works were made.
Work of the artist Berni Puig.
“It was not about illustrating what the neighbors tell them, it is simply an inspiration, the artist can take a single element of the story, an idea. And, although they propose abstract creations, the beauty is that the neighbors immediately identify the work that is based on his story, ”says Luis about this idea, which this year will materialize in the Arrabal neighborhood.
“At that time it was necessary to do it virtually because there was no other way, now we believe that the project can grow. This year it is done more carefully.”
The result of the last edition –in the form of photos, canvases…– can still be seen exhibited in the neighborhood of San José (on the outside wall of the Utrillo Association, on San Juan de la Peña Avenue, corner of C/Mas de las Matas).
Work of Dani Hache.
This speech that links artistic expression with the identity and experiences of a neighborhood perfectly sums up the spirit of what the Assault Festival is, which since its inception in 2005 has witnessed a change of perception by the public regarding urban art.
“It has normalized, obviously. When we start, they looked at us with some fear, thinking that we would do pure and simple graffiti”, Louis recalls. “Then it has been seen that it is not only a way to tidy up the spaces but also to tell stories of the neighborhoods. At least that's how we see it in Zaragoza, as something collective and defensible”.
“The neighborhoods themselves show it and they generate that empowerment of 'this space is mine and I help create it'. On the other hand, this urban art thing as such is a bubble and at some point it will burst, we prefer to talk about public and contextual art, that is done by and for a specific moment, not only to clean up facades”, underlines Luis.
In fact, the festival – which, just before the pandemic, was the best rated in Aragon– attracts public of all nationalities. “There are visitors from outside Spain who come on purpose, looking for us, they mark the appointment in their agenda. And we noticed a greater participation. Perhaps what makes the project unique is its full transparency. The visits are not intended as one more attraction but as an important part of the festival”.
And it is that, apart from the interventions by artists, they are programmed Parallel activities, encounters, Guided tours, workshops for all ages, exhibitions...
"That visitors see the whole process, talk to the artists... it's important, It is done this way so that everyone knows the intention and entity of the walls we paint. This feeling of closeness makes the Assault unique. We are a family and the artists notice it and reflect it that way. It is a city project, done with love. Whoever comes realizes it and falls in love in some way, wants to be part of it”, comments Luis.
Work of Maite Rosende.
FOR CULTURE LOVERS… AND FAMILIES
Contrary to what one might think a priori, the audience for the Assault is mostly family. "We think it's a very interesting way for children to get into art although, in general, we target people with a sensitivity to culture", emphasizes Luis.
"Urban art is usually linked to adolescents and young people, because of the graffiti issue, but in this case it really isn't. Our public goes from 20 years upwards, we are aware and we are already focused on that”.
The recovery of a certain normality in the workshops is one of the most exciting things in this XVI edition of the Assault. “It is the strong point of the festival. We will go with some care, to see how it works and how people react. What we most want is to go back to that classic closing party weekend; if it goes well, it will be the strong bet for the following year”.
Twee Muizen exhibits at the Story Center.
For future editions, they intend to occupy even more exhibition spaces. “It is a line that we want to continue working on, if everything goes well, in 2022 we will promote it more. We want a lot of things to happen inside and outside the theaters,” Luis tells Condé Nast Traveler.
This year, the Zaragoza History Center host the sample A Universe of Two (from September 24 to January 16, 2022), on the evolution and artistic development of the Galician multidisciplinary couple Twee Muizen (Denis and Cris), around identity.
Olga de Dios, Zaragoza Assault Festival.