Albuquerque nominated for ‘Best City for Street Art’

In Albuquerque, street art covers public buildings, highway underpasses, restaurants, hotels and more, depicting New Mexico’s diverse cultures, political and social issues and history. With its diverse and stunning illustrations has come national recognition that could earn the city the title of being the nation’s very best for street art.

In late January, Albuquerque was nominated for USA Today’s “Best City for Street Art” competition, vying for the most votes against cities including Atlanta, Austin, Texas and Chicago.

The competition examines street art beyond its eye-catching features and colors, looking instead into the cultural significance that each city’s street art represents.

In 2024, the City of Albuquerque’s public art program and Bernalillo County conducted a public art census that found 11,225 pieces of public art in the city, Michael Ogilvie, public art urban enhancement division manager for the City of Albuquerque, wrote to the Daily Lobo.

Visual art has played a vital role in New Mexico’s environment and culture for centuries, visible through examples such as the 22,000 petroglyphs in Petroglyph National Monument, located west of Albuquerque, Ogilvie wrote.

“Because the history here is entrenched in creativity, you tend to get more art that echoes this history and expands upon it. Because of this tradition of visual history, and the immensity of it, innovation in creative output accelerates,” Ogilvie wrote.

Albuquerque’s local artwork demonstrates important cultural touchstones, such as the historic Route 66, the history of New Mexico’s Indigenous peoples, land and water rights and important figures such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Dolores Huerta.

A few thematic approaches artists tend to gravitate towards are the literal translation or interpretation of history, such as the representational mural just completed at the Wheels Museum by artist Ryan Saveedra, or Mountain Top, the Martin Luther King Jr. tribute mural on Tijeras Ave and 1st street by Noé Barnett, Ogilvie wrote. 

Voting is cast on the

USA Today website and will close at 10 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 16. The winning city will be announced on Feb. 25.

Maria Fernandez is the copy editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at copy@dailylobo.com or on X @dailylobo