Staring at brick walls night not sound the most interesting past time but it depends on what they are covered in. I always find myself drawn to street art, the bolder the better, and Adeje has some fine examples of how to crash into people’s minds when they least expect it. There was an early bonus for me on my latest walk up the Calle Grande in Adeje town centre, a new arts space La Musa de Adeje, only a few weeks on from its opening and full of delights by 11 artists from Tenerife and La Gomera.
Their first exhibition is called Musas and featured paintings, sculptures, and works in metal and stone. Each artists area had a brief written introduction in Spanish and English to their inspirations and choice of materials and the gallery hosts had plenty of knowledgeable information for browsers. A few of the artists names were familiar to me and one was to feature again later on my Adeje tour. It’s a commercial gallery and all the works are for sale, there is a shortage of outlets in the south of Tenerife for local talent and exhibitions will run here for around six weeks before they ring the changes. You can find a full run down of the works on the website but it’s so much more rewarding to pop in and browse, Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 7 pm.
Onward to my planned calls, both murals, Adeje Ayuntamiento has encouraged a series of large artistic tributes to the traditions of the area and I passed between some in Avenida de la Constitution and Piedra Redonda before reaching La Postura where a giant red and white communication mast has dominated the eyeline – but now it has competition. Artist Matias Mata has transformed an ugly wall in Calle Telefonica into a bright, flowing display of positive faces with calls for freedom, humanity, and liberty. The detail on the facial expressions brings them to life and the bold colours reach out and grab you. Matias may have already tweaked your attention with his multi coloured bus stops on the TF1 motorway as you head into Santa Cruz.
Las Nieves was still left on my tick list but I needed to remind myself of the suburbs exact position so I took an overview from the modern church Plaza Antonio Moreira Bua. Even with a glorious view out to sea and a clear outline of La Gomera, the 240 square metre homage to Adeje’s agricultural past hit me straight between the eyes. It looked even more impressive close up, the church like central arch, common to the neighbouring modern pink blocks, was offset perfectly by the scenes on the brick canvas. The artist Conrado Diaz had already impressed me with his smaller works at the La Musa De Adeje exhibition but the sheer scale of this was awe inspiring. If you want to see some more of Adeje’s triumphs here’s a previous crop but do yourself a favour and take a wander through the streets of Adeje for the real thing.