Visitors to the local chapel in Youssofia, Morocco are now treated to a transcendant experience the moment they lay eyes upon its walls, thanks to a brand new mural from globe-trotting street artist Okuda San Miguel. Fresh off his colorful transformation of the Spanish city Asturias' Church of Santa Barbera into the Kaos Temple, Okuda returns to the altar by decking out the Moroccan chapel in his signature multicolored geometric characters.
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“I think churches gave me another leve of spiritualism within my characters and my art," Okuda tells The Creators Project. "The characters are more powerful because of the incredible ‘canvas’ on which they are placed." The piece, entiltled 11 Mirages of Freedom, features stunning images of people and animals integrated with the chapel's 10 windows and arching doorway.
Even though Morocco is a largely Muslim nation, Okuda tells us that the chapel was embraced by people of all cultures. "It seems that religions and spiritualism are changing with the new generations. It doesn’t matter where it is located or the culture living in that place," he says. "Art doesn’t care about borders. Muslim people came to take pictures of the Moroccan church, and pictures of me and with me."11 Mirages of Freedom is part of the British Council-sponsored Street Art Caravane, which takes place all over the Morocco. If their goal was to build an art community, and taking selfies constitutes that, then they've certainly succeeded.
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