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<\/p>\nImproving the world through art: that is what drives Alba Silla, also known under her artistic name of Alba Bla. And learning is her fuel: learning about herself and others. A CEU graduate in Advertising and Audiovisual Communication, she decided to leave behind a permanent contract at a job in the industry to explore her passion for drawing: she\u2019s just come back from completing a social muralism project in Mexico. In our interview, she told us all about this and other creative projects she has.<\/p>\n
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You\u2019ve just got back from Culiac\u00e1n, in Sinaloa, Mexico. So, amongst other things, you now have the experience of painting four murals. Tell us about it.<\/strong><\/p>\n Yes.\u00a0Ciudad Mural<\/strong>\u00a0is an initiative from the Colectivo Tomate<\/strong>\u00a0group, as part of the M\u00e9xico bien hecho\u00a0<\/strong>project, which is supported by\u00a0Comex<\/strong>. The aim of this project is to strengthen the social fabric and breath new life into different urban areas through art. They select several Mexican and international artists for the project in each city.<\/p>\n During the project, you\u2019re living and working alongside other artists and members of the group, you take part in activities with the local residents, you get to know them and you hear their stories, and they\u2019re the ones you have to represent in the murals. I made three murals, one made just by me and another two in conjunction with other artists for project. And I also did another one on a private basis in Mexico City.<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019ve learnt a lot from the people i\u2019ve met, abouT the little i need in life and how much you gain from the generosity, friendliness and affection you can receive from people you\u2019ve just met.\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n How did you end up doing this in particular? We\u2019ll come back to how you got into painting itself in a minute.<\/strong><\/p>\n I decided to go to Mexico to celebrate being 30 but then later I thought that if went there I didn\u2019t want to go as a tourist but to do something art-related. I came across the Colectivo Tomate on Instagram and I really liked their work and the Ciudad Mural project. They called for new applications and I sent in my portfolio without thinking about it too much. And then, surprise! I\u2019d been selected.<\/p>\n Quite a challenge.<\/strong><\/p>\n Absolutely. To have to tell other people\u2019s stories, empathizing with them and trying to explain their experience through your art. You\u2019re channelling something and you have to do it as best you can. But it was also a really beautiful thing: talking to people, doing your own research and then sharing that with the other artists.<\/p>\n For example, in the first mural, Esmape<\/strong>\u00a0(a Mexican artist) and I painted two sides of the same house. We went to interview the owner together and he told us stories about when it was built, about his wife and his children. And even though we heard exactly the same stories, our approaches were totally different. I loved that.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/medios.uchceu.es\/actualidad-ceu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/02\/alba-bla-pintura-primer-mural.jpg\")
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