PICTURE THIS

Mexican Street Art — From San Miguel de Allende to Mexico City

Trust the experts to expose the urban gallery

Xoloitzcuintli (Aztec dog of the gods) with a woman — Darren Weir

Street art is where I often find the spirit of a city. It’s accessible since there are open canvases everywhere — and it doesn’t require any special training to express a thought or emotion to the world. It’s the original social media with a language all its own.

Every place I travel, I make time to seek out the local visual expressions on streets and alleyways. One of the first things I do is scope out the best areas to find street art and murals.

This time though, it was my friend who had the idea to explore San Miguel’s arts district for some wall art. He’d seen a picture online of a woman with bougainvillea growing like a crown of flowers around her head. He wanted to find it. Since I love street art and I love adventure I jumped at the idea.

“Every bird has a story” — Darren Weir

We walked through the large neighborhood snapping photos in the sweltering heat. When we stopped in the shade at one intersection we overheard two women speaking English, which is always a conversation starter. We said hello and…