Shakira honored with statue in her hometown in Colombia

A (large) statue of the Colombian singer was inaugurated this week along the seafront of Barranquilla, the city where she grew up.

The Colombian coastal city of Barranquilla this week unveiled a 21-foot-tall tribute to one of the country's most famous cultural exports: Shakira.

< p class="css-at9mc1 evys1bk0 ">"A heart that composes, hips that don't lie, unparalleled talent, a voice that moves the masses and bare feet that walk for the good of children and humanity ", we read on the plaque located under the statue.

"I am honored and moved by this incredible recognition in my Barranquilla, the city where I was born", Shakira said in a statement. “Every barranquillero and barranquillera are my brothers and sisters and the inspiration of my life since my childhood.”

The sculptor of the statue, Yino Márquez, said delighted by the way. the sculpture was greeted by the public as well as Shakira and her family after its unveiling on Tuesday. The singer's mother, he said, told him that God would bless his hands for being such a good sculptor.

“Shakira herself told me called and told me I had captured his essence. very good in sculpture. That his son saw the sculpture and said it was the most beautiful sculpture he had ever seen,” Mr. Márquez said.

The artist The 52-year-old said he has been working on sculptures since he was 16. He has created large statues for other Colombian cities and is an academic coordinator at the Barranquilla Public Art Academy.

In June, Barranquilla Mayor Jaime Pumarejo called him to let him know he was a candidate to create a sculpture of Shakira that the city wanted to erect on the waterfront. He found out he had been chosen about a month later, when the mayor announced it to the public.

ImageColombian artist Yino Marquez working on the statue in August.Credit...Jésus Rico/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

Mr. Pumarejo said that about a year ago he started thinking about ways to honor important people in Barranquilla in order to increase tourism and serve as role models for young people. Municipal authorities opted for a statue representing the Barranquilla coat of arms and one of Shakira, who, according to the mayor, agreed with the idea.

Together, The two statues cost about 700 million Colombian pesos, or $180,000, he said.

“It was a monumental task,” he said. -he declares. But he added that he was more than happy with the results. "I think in the end it's a lot more than we expected."

Shakira, 46, who now lives mainly in Miami, is born in Barranquilla, a port city. of 1.2 million inhabitants and has long been home to many Colombian-Lebanese families like hers.

Even though she lives abroad and goes tour, it maintains a close relationship with the city. . She returns several times a year, has funded several schools and founded a foundation that works to improve early childhood education in Colombia.

"Between the Syrian dances- Lebanese "Mixed with the flavors of the Caribbean which are embodied in his hips, in his way of dancing, they show a Barranquilla of migrants, a Barranquilla open to the world, to integration and diversity", declared Mr. Pumarejo. woman who dared and succeeded.”