The cemetery is not the happiest place in the town, but the City of Anoeta wanted to give life to the place where the deceased live. “The orientation gives the south, a cemetery surrounded by pines, where the sun did not rise, the moss and humidity predominated,” said the mayor, Pello Estanga. The environment has been ordained and a mural has been painted on the back wall of the cemetery. ‘There is no need for large infrastructures, some brushes are enough to reach people’s interior, and as long as that is in our hands, we will.’

The project is based on participation. “Citizenship has decided what to paint on that wall,” said Estanga. The cultural association Ikertze has placed artists Arantxa Orbegozo and Nerea Linazasoro to guide and energize the process. In the first two meetings, the ideas were collected and defined. The participation of many citizens was high and those who did not present were also able to make their contribution through social networks.

Image that transmits peace

Orbegozo explained that at the first meetings held in the City Hall a basis was agreed: “Here are people of many colors, in Anoeta there is a lot of belief, and therefore, the first thing we agreed upon is not to put religious symbols. Then, people commented on the possibility of placing an image related to nature, which would connect with the earth; soft symbols and colors related to the Basque Country were also mentioned. After all, the cemetery is a place to be quiet and to cry, and to do so it sought to create a pleasant atmosphere”.

The artist of Tolosa took all of these ideas to an outline. “This is not the mural I would have painted, if I had ordered it, it would have been another one. In this work there is a lot of will from many people and that is what gives value to the image of the wall.” The last three weeks have been painting. The citizens' proposals have been represented on a wall of 25 meters in length. A bridge has been placed in the centre of the street. “It represents the journey of life. You know what's at the end of the bridge, but before you get there, everyone decides what trip to make. That is why we have laid footprints on the ground.' On the right side of the bridge, there are overlapping records "representing the balance of life, as if it were a Chinese garden". On the left, connecting with the Basque Country, a few meters have been installed that are about to disappear. On one side, in the branch of a tree, there is the cuckoo, symbol of Anoeta, and along the whole image of the wall, the birds, from one side to the other. On both sides of the wall, on two walls of 3x3 meters, a lauburu and a Celtic image have been placed and at the entrance of the cemetery a flower of the sun, "a symbol used at one time to scare the evil spirits".

Orbegozo and Linazasoro have been in charge of guiding the work over the past few weeks and the citizens have approached to help or to adjust and clean the environments. “People end up very happy, because they are not usually used to these jobs, and so they learn the trade as well. In the end, they feel their own image of the wall." Once the works are finished, Orbegozo has invited all the people who come to photograph and play: “By playing with perspective, you can take nice and fun photos.” On another wall of the cemetery, visitors will be able to do their bit of sand and write what they would like to do before they die. A citizen has already written 'Make a journey without a return'.

The council will now consider setting up a bank, so that those who want to be calm can have it. Estanga stressed that the citizenship that has seen the mural project has received it “with satisfaction and gratitude”. “If we leave twenty sketches and ten brushes to the population, it is clear that many worlds can be created,” Orbegozo stressed by looking at the image of the wall.

<< This news has been published by the Tolosaldea Portal and we have brought it to ARGIA thanks to the CC-by-sa license.