Boa Mistura materialized the work on four silos of Agroalimentarios Terminal, almost 26 meters high and 14 meters in diameter. After a process of open dialogue with the city and its inhabitants, the people of Santander, Boa Mistura distilled the foundation for three proposals, now crystallizing the most voted one.
The authors will replicate this model of port–city integration in a large number of cities. Tiempo de Arte thus leads a large-scale initiative, integrating science, art, and society. With the support of public and private institutions, and through dialogue with citizens and co-creation, the project highlights art as a tool for social cohesion.
ALMA project by Boa Mistura. Images courtesy of Boa Mistura.
Project description by Boa Mistura
Under the premise that culture contributes to well-being, the artistic collective Boa Mistura, Cantabria Labs, and Tiempo de Arte have launched a cultural innovation project that redefines the role of business in community building and serves as an example of public-private collaboration that puts people at the center.
The initiative, which began in Santander with the artistic intervention of four industrial silos in the port, aims to expand to other Spanish cities, consolidating a replicable model of collaboration with a legacy. The artwork, conceived through dialogue with citizens and co-creation, transforms urban spaces into symbols of shared identity, collective memory, and a common future.
ALMA was conceived following creative workshops conducted by Boa Mistura in collaboration with various citizen groups. More than 100 people explained what the port and the city of Santander mean to them, inspiring the artists to propose three alternatives for the artistic execution.
When the time came to choose, ALMA was selected as the winning artwork, having been voted on by more than 1,000 people. The result is a giant mural in the port of Santander, created with the brushstrokes of more than 120 volunteers guided by the artists of Boa Mistura.
This project represents a new business narrative in which innovation is not limited to the scientific field, but extends to the cultural and social sphere, contributing to the well-being and cohesion of people. Cantabria Labs is thus promoting a large-scale initiative, integrating science, art, and society under a single purpose. For the company, business should not only reinvest its wealth in society, but also co-create it alongside it, committing to innovation that inspires and generates real change.
With the support of public and private institutions, the project is positioning itself as an international benchmark for how art can be a catalyst for social cohesion and symbolic transformation. Santander has been the first of many other cities around the world that will replicate this port-city integration model, which are symbolically united thanks to art.
