Jacó Street Art: The Murals at Bird of Paradise Hotel
A stairwell painted for Artify Jacó, a pool wall and eighteen rooms that never repeat: the story of the art you live with here, and the mural town around it.
The short version
- The mural that wraps the stairwell was painted by Ulises Rivera, known as Ulillo, for Artify Jacó in December 2021.
- Roman (Ecoarte Tafur) painted the pool wall and the art in every room, so no two rooms repeat.
- Artify Jacó has been filling the town with murals since 2016, and in December 2022 the street art photographer Martha Cooper came to photograph them, our stairwell included.
- The guided street art tour of Jacó starts at our front gate.
The stairwell: Ulises Rivera for Artify Jacó
The geometric mural that wraps the stairwell and the Paradise Grille building was painted in December 2021 by Ulises Rivera, who signs his work Ulillo, as part of Artify Jacó, the town's mural program. Artify Jacó thanked Tina and the hotel team for the donation that made the mural possible.
“A huge thank you to #ulillo for his beautiful new mural! And to Tina and her staff at @birdofparadisehotel for supporting more art in our community. Their generous donation and support allowed this project to happen.”
Ulises was born in Mexico in 1984 and grew up in Costa Rica. He started with graffiti in 2012 and is now one of the country's best-known muralists, painting geometric abstractions in the colors of the Costa Rican landscape. His painting Verde Tierra is in the permanent collection of the Costa Rican Art Museum.
Our mural is about nature: leaves and branches broken into planes of green, ochre, rust, pink and sky blue. In his own words:
“Depending on the time of the year, the vegetation of these pieces of natural art can vary in hue and shapes.”
He finished his post about the mural with a thank you to the hotel:
“Special thanks to the organization for making this possible, it has been a pleasure working with you and to @birdofparadisehotel for making me feel at home.”
The same artwork now carries onto a set of surfboards, each with our logo. Nico Fischer Surfboards restored them here in Jacó and made them into custom art boards for us. They live with the rest of our rental boards, so you can take a piece of the mural into the waves: anyone can rent them, guest or not, by the day or by the week. Ask at the front desk.
The pool wall and the rooms: Roman
Roman, who works as Ecoarte Tafur, painted the mural along the pool wall, a jungle of leaves, flowers and a big blue butterfly, and then the art in every one of our eighteen rooms. Each room has its own piece, so no two rooms repeat. He also painted our cold plunge, waves and all, and most recently our sauna.
Artify Jacó and the town's murals
Artify Jacó began in 2016 with a simple idea: fill the town with contemporary murals about nature, love, community and hope. Its founder, Stewart Invierno, has since brought local and international artists to paint walls all over Jacó, from Costa Rican painters like Ulises to names such as Dulk, DourOne and Farid Rueda.
In December 2022 Martha Cooper, who has photographed graffiti and street art around the world for more than four decades, came to Jacó with the photographer Nika Kramer to see the murals, with Stewart as their guide. Our stairwell was among the murals in the set she shared from the visit in January 2023.
Seeing the murals
The guided walking street art tour of Jacó passes more than eighteen murals in about two easy hours, and it starts at our front gate. It is run by an independent local guide, and we can book your place at the front desk.
Questions travelers ask
Who painted the murals at Bird of Paradise Hotel?
Ulises Rivera (Ulillo) painted the stairwell mural for Artify Jacó in December 2021. Roman (Ecoarte Tafur) painted the pool wall, the art in every room, the cold plunge and the sauna.
What is Artify Jacó?
Jacó's mural program, started in 2016, which brings local and international artists to paint walls around town on themes of nature, love, community and hope.
Is there a street art tour in Jacó?
Yes. A guided walking tour passes more than eighteen murals in about two hours. It starts at our front gate and is run by an independent local guide.
Can I see the mural if I am not staying at the hotel?
Yes. Paradise Grille, our poolside cafe and bar, is open to walk-ins.
Can I rent the mural surfboards?
Yes. They are part of our rental boards, and anyone can rent them, guest or not, by the day or by the week. Ask at the front desk.
