Lima’s Rainbow Hill

by Eduardo Fernandez de Rodrigues

Located on San Cristobal Hill the colourfully painted houses are already adding a rainbow to the capitals hillside that overlooks the city’s historic downtown.

Ideally viewed from afar, the bright pink, yellow, blue and red painted buildings are decoratively spread across the hillside.

The artwork is taking inspiration from traditional pre-Incan patterns and colours, giving a modern take on the country rich history.

With a total of 1,000 houses to paint, Project Rainbow is well underway and will be a striking addition to the city.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

This is not the first time a cityscape has been transformed into a colourful tourist attraction. The infamous favelas of Rio de Janeiro were transformed with hues of bright blues, greens, yellows, and pinks across the facades of 31 buildings of the favelas turning them into a massive work of art.

With the purpose to bring prosperity to the poorer areas of the cities in the above examples, other painted houses are also considered tourist attraction like Nyhavn in Copenhagen. Nyhavn is a 17th-century waterfront, lined by brightly coloured townhouses that today house bars, cafes and restaurants.

In London, the Notting Hill area of the capital is full of streets with colourfully painted houses, which have become tourist attractions over the years.

Copenhagen, Denmark

London, United Kingdom

Hidden in the Venice Lagoon sits the island of Burano. The pretty waterside of the canal is lined with brightly coloured fishermen houses and small shops.

Even the most run down, poor areas, or once thriving fishing towns can easily be reborn in a burst of colour and a big splash of paint in all the colours of the rainbow!