Mariana Betancur

Mariana Betancur Cuartas, who signs her walls "Guacamaya Azul", is a Colombian artist born in Medellín and a fine arts graduate of the Universidad de Antioquia. She turned to muralism to voice her love of animals: her walls mix Amazonian fauna, Colombian flora and female figures drawn from indigenous peoples, around mestizaje, cultural diversity and respect for biodiversity. She sees the street as the best stage to defend pet adoption and respect for every living being. Most of her murals are in Antioquia. In 2023 the Colombian embassy in Belgium invited her to paint a 7.5 by 2.5 metre fresco on the wall of the Museum of Natural Sciences in Brussels, alongside muralists from Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Spain, as part of the Eulac4(BIO)Diversity initiative tied to the EU-CELAC summit.