Florido and Gómez, together with the artists at the opening of the mural in Munich. SUR

Malaga catches Munich’s eye with a Picasso mural to promote the city

The mural, which displays Malaga’s urban and cultural appeal, has caught the eye of the main German media outlets

Pilar Martínez

Malaga

Wednesday, 3 May 2023, 13:12

Malaga’s Picasso-inspired mural in Munich has caught the interest of the German media, including the big television channels. They are fascinated by the innovative way of promoting Malaga, which also takes advantage of it being ‘Picasso Year’, to mark the 50th anniversary of the painter’s death.

The 13-metre-long and 4.5-metre-high mural was created by Malaga artist ‘Lalone’ Eduardo Luque in collaboration with German artist Cam Temizgezek.

It aims to display the Costa del Sol city’s offering as an urban and cultural destination. Jacobo Florido, Malaga’s councillor for tourism, spoke at the unveiling of the mural last Friday, 28 April. This is one of several projects taking place in the city under the slogan ‘Malaga loves Munich’.

“This new way to promote a city has proven to be a great success” he said, going on to explain the strategy behind the location of the mural.

The area, near the river Isar and bordering the neighbourhoods Au and Giesing, is considered a place of artistic interest.

The project has been carried out with the collaboration of the Spanish tourism office in Munich, explained Florido.

The mural’s aim is to draw the attention of the people of Munich to the Picasso Year and Malaga’s other cultural offerings.

The idea is to further develop Malaga’s reputation as an urban destination, combining characteristic elements from both cities.

“It is very unique, as it invites you on a visual journey to discover the city or to rediscover it from a new perspective. It is a mural that evokes the senses; when looking at it you can hear, see, taste, smell and touch. These senses are activated in different ways to bring the essence of Malaga to the visitor. In the same way as Picasso’s work, the mural fragments vision and suggests different things to each observer,” he pointed out.

“The element that structured the whole design was the M. Because it connects the words Malaga and Munich, simultaneously using typography to portray a bridge, a place of transition and union. The elements that make up the design were created using the artists’ visual force and conceptual power,” he added.

The mural features the ‘biznaga’ flower seller, the cathedral, the local sardine espeto, memories of Picasso’s childhood holidays and the Phoenician eye symbol from the boats of Malaga, which Picasso also featured in many of his works, including Guernica.

Jacobo Florido said, “Street marketing and promotion of Malaga as an urban cultural destination is also taking place in Shanghai, Sao Paulo, Buenos Aires, Basel and more locations to be confirmed.”