El refugio cultural festival, graffiti and urban art in the historic centre of Puebla in Mexico

The 'El Refugio Cultural Festival' in Puebla, Mexico, has transformed the historic Barrio el Refugio into a dynamic space for urban art, producing over 1,000 pieces of graffiti and murals—including Wild Style graffiti, bombs, stickers, stencils—in ten years. Despite its UNESCO-listed heritage, the neighborhood faced stigma as a 'den of thieves.' The festival, driven by local artists without government support, challenges this narrative while contributing to Puebla's broader 'Puebla Ciudad Mural' initiative, though its impact remains more tourist-oriented than community-driven.

Jiménez, G. V., Hernández Sánchez, A., & De La Torre Sánchez, C. E. (2021). El refugio cultural festival, graffiti and urban art in the historic centre of Puebla in Mexico. Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Philosophica. Ethica-Aesthetica-Practica, (39), 91–111. https://doi.org/10.18778/0208-6107.39.07