The Mijas Town Hall plans to add cultural value to the coast with the creation of a “museum of murals on the beaches”, an initiative that will beautify the coastline and its accesses as a tourist attraction, according to the councilor of the branch, José Carlos Martín.
Thus, the walls of the bridges that maintain the A-7 Mediterranean Highway as it passes through the municipality, and many of which give access to the beach, are will become canvases in which customs and species will be shown Mijas natives to value the local culture.
The mayor has highlighted that along the coast of Mijas there is “a series of walls that overlook the sea”, detailing that with this project “we are going to paint them as if they were canvases with marine and typical details of La Cala to endow them with a special charm”.
The aim is to provide the coast with a new attraction in the destination of sun and beach, and that “the people who are sunbathing or bathing can enjoy these artistic expressions, as well as those who visit us can be photographed as a souvenir of their stay in our city”.
According to the municipal official, the idea arose in “a joint meeting of Beaches and Operational Servicesbecause we always paint those walls to keep them clean as part of the actions we carry out to maintain the coastline”.
At that time, Martín has indicated that “we proposed that one of the municipal workers, who is also a local artist specializing in murals, instead of painting these sites white, he will carry out his artistic expressions that are increasingly being requested inside and outside the city”.
For this, the Consistory has proposed five locations divided between El Chaparral, El Faro and La Cala, whose investment “will be minimal, since the material is provided by the Operational Services”.
The designs will be presented shortly and valued by the City Council, so “as soon as we have the sketches decided we will start painting the murals”, the first deputy mayor has advanced.
Among the most outstanding elements that will be shown in these outdoor urban murals are examples of mijas fauna such as the Kentish Plover or dolphins, as well as other outstanding native species.
East small wading bird is protected and it is typical of the Mijas coast, calling the attention of users for its orange feathers on its head and long black legs that allow it to walk nicely on the sand.
On the other hand, Mijas is a Zone of bird watchingthat is, sightings of a wide range of unique birds in southern Europe, so these animals will not be missing in the murals, indicated the councilor, who has pointed out that “the plover are not the only ones that can be seen on the coast of Mijas, as it is very easy to spot cetaceans from the beach, which will also be included in this project”.
The murals will also lend a special attention to marine flora, specifically the one referring to the ZEC area (Zone of Special Conservation) of Calahonda, where “the oceanic posidonia meadows inhabited by a rich biodiversity and allow the oxygenation of the water” are located under the sea. In addition, details of seafaring life, traditions and other symbols of Mijas will be reflected in the works of urban art, he has referred.
“The murals beautify the environmentbrighten the eyes of users, distinguish us from other beaches and also teach us peculiarities of our municipality embodied in each of these artistic expressions”, pointed out Martín who added that “if the weather conditions and storms allow it, to the summer they will all be finished”.