Colors are the perfect cure for monotony and banality, and that goes for landscapes too. Like the Bulgarian artist Christo Guelov who brought a touch of cheerfulness to Madrid's zebra crossings at the end of 2016, an Indonesian mayor also understood that colors could bring life back to an environment that inspired only indifference. Hendrar Prihadi is the head of the city of Semarang, near which is the small village of Kampung Pelangi which has undergone an incredible renovation. The place, once considered a slum, now looks like an enchanted world:the 223 houses it hosts have all been repainted with at least 3 different colors, as well as all the public facilities such as the bridge and the benches. 3D drawings represented here and there on the walls have completed the picture worthy of an episode of Barbapapa.
Local authorities spent 3 million rupees, or around €210, for this radical transformation according to the site Lonely Planet . And everyone pitched in, from local painters to the mayor himself. If the initiative was of course aimed at satisfying the inhabitants of Kampung Pelangi, the main goal was to restore the attractiveness of this forgotten village. And the bet is taken up hands down:since the end of the works last month, curious tourists flock to this environment which is in a way the paradise of Instagram posts. Local merchants selling souvenirs and food are overjoyed by the growing number of visitors. And the social project does not stop there:Mayor Hendrar Prihadi would like around 160 additional houses to be colored, and for the nearby river to be cleaned and sanitized over time, which would raise the budget for the renovation to 135,000 €.
A simple and effective idea… We are absolutely won over by the result!
