Calle Lanín, Open-air art street in Barracas, Argentina

Calle Lanín is a residential street in Barracas where nearly every house displays colorful paintings and geometric patterns across its facade. The designs range from simple lines to complex color combinations, and together they form an extended gallery that runs across two city blocks.

The street was formerly known as Pasaje Silva, and its current name, decreed on 28 October 1904, recalls the extinct Lanín volcano in Neuquén province. The painted facades project, devised by artist Marino Santa María, whose workshop is at Lanín 33, was inaugurated on 19 April 2001 and covered 35 house fronts between Brandsen and Suárez. It was carried out under an agreement between the artist, the Banco Ciudad foundation, the city culture secretariat, paint firm Alba S.A., the OEI, UNESCO and Corporación Buenos Aires Sur.

The street was formerly called Pasaje Silva, a name of uncertain origin that may come from an old neighbour's surname; it was renamed Lanín by ordinance on 28 October 1904, after the extinct volcano in Neuquén province. Artist Marino Santa María, who lives and keeps his studio at Lanín 33, led the painting project, and some residents painted their own facades, replaced pavements and improved lighting to match.

Visit early in the morning or late afternoon when sunlight best brings out the colors of the painted facades. The street is residential, so it is important to be respectful of residents and their privacy while walking through.

The project was funded by a 2001 agreement between artist Marino Santa María, the Banco Ciudad foundation, the city's culture secretariat, paint maker Alba S.A., the OEI, UNESCO and Corporación Buenos Aires Sur. Santa María lives and keeps his studio at Lanín 33, on the same street he painted.