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local Saturday 9 July 2022
Extraordinary mosaic artist, Omaira Silva,

wants to see durable art in Aruba

Many people sat to admire her while she was as a gift was for her friend, Minouche Hamers,
working on a bench, decorated with images of and was a mirror with a mosaic frame. “I’m sure
flora and fauna by Costa Linda, as part of Lin- she has it still.”
ear Park. And for Omaira Silva, this bench is just
another step for Aruba to become ‘one mosaic Aruba Art Fair and Isidora
island’. But the whole of Aruba came to know Omaira
the artist in 2016, with Aruba Art Fair. Initially, Silva
Omaira Silva is total personality: A person full of met with a whole group to hear the idea from
energy and always ready to motivate others to Tito Bolivar, the mind behind the art event for Studio has produced a huge amount of art,
get involved with Aruba. As a member of Wom- San Nicolas. Bolivar knew the artist Isidora Paz from the streets of San Nicolas all the way to
en’s Club of Aruba, Silva is present and directs Lopez, from Chile, ‘who was also my idol’. The Paseo Herencia. But her focus remained on the
activities in the interest of the community. And intention was for Omaira to also participate in project of social benches. “When I was living in
these activities must always have a lot of emo- the Art Fair, but she didn’t hear anything more the Netherlands, they started with the project
tion and color, because Omaira is a person full about the project. to put benches like this in every province in the
of emotion and color and she wants to share Netherlands. When I went to Germany, I went
this special energy and vibes with Aruba. Meanwhile, Isidora did come Aruba, invited to see the benches.” The project Ban Mosaik,
by Enrita Werleman, another mosaic artist. Lo- together with Tito Bolivar, was however limited
It was in 1996 when Omaira Silva went to live in pez Paz came with her design, but also under because of the pandemic.
the Netherlands, that she decided to take the the impression that there would be a big team
art of mosaic seriously. She came in contact to help her with her work in Aruba. “Isidora is But Mota Engil, in charge of the Watty Vos Bou-
with a group who would make art out of bro- an artist who experiences ‘breakdowns’. Right levard, approached Omaira Silva to create
ken tiles, and there was no way to stop Omaira. now she is going through such a moment”, Om- a mosaic social sofa in Eagle Beach. And the
“From the first moment when I broke my first tile, aira told us last year. And in June 2016, in Aruba, project of benches decorated with Aruba’s
I felt powerful”, Silva says. She had a lot of yel- Isidora needed help with her creation ‘Carnival flora and fauna became a reality, and intro-
low tiles to work with, and she created a sort of Nymph’, after she started working on her proj- duced Omaira to various users of Eagle Beach
sunflower on wood. “It was something small, but ect at her hotel in Aruba. who came to see the work, and tourists who
I liked it a lot and I wanted to continue with this kept coming to Aruba despite the pandemic.
form of art.” “Mervine Kock told Tito Bolivar that I would be
able to help her finish with the project.” Bolivar Today, that bench is testimony to the dedica-
But it was in 2000, when Omaira moved to Mal- called Silva, and by the next day the artist went tion of an artist who believes that mosaic can
lorca to be with her offspring who was doing an to meet her idol. The connection was instant, bring a lot more color to Aruba. However pretty
internship at a hotel, that she really fell in love and that same night, Omaira went to pick up all the paintings in San Nicolas may be, the in-
with mosaic; particularly after doing a course, her own materials, from light to even a broom, tense sun of Aruba affects the paint; but mo-
and ‘I felt that this is really my thing’. because she knew what is involved in such a saic remains firm and colorful.
project. They worked during foud days, includ-
In 2004 Omaira came back to Aruba, went to ing at night, on the piece, and by the end of Omaira Silva’s vision is to put more mosaic so-
live in Savaneta, and that’s how her mosaic Art the fourth day they went to install the piece in cial benches in Playa, but to create a different
Studio was born. First thing she did when going San Nicolas. “We succeeded”, Silva says. But type of installation with mosaic, with typical de-
home was to go find tiles, because she was de- the final touch to the design came in October, signs of Aruba, to place around the island. The
termined to develop her art. First the creations a couple of months later, when the artist came artist visualizes even mosaic totems with the de-
were for her own collection, and then she real- back to add the final details to the piece which signs that the first Arubans left behind, designs
ized they were the ideal gift. Her first mosaic art to this day receives a lot of attention. unique to Aruba, made by hands which are
still strong enough to break tiles, to bring more
The collaboration between Isidora and Omaira color to Aruba.q
led to a friendship and another collaboration,
but this time in Pirmasens, Germany, where the
Chilean artist was invited to create the biggest
mosaic mural in Rhineland. And Omaira was
part of that piece, which received a lot of at-
tention in international press. “It was right be-
fore the pandemic”, Silva remembers. It was
even in December 2019, when the world was
watching closely for a virus from Wuhan, China.

The project in Germany was followed by a
piece which Omaira did herself, invited by Tito
Bolivar, which was the angel wings in San Nico-
las. Wings made from seashells which is one of
the most eye-catching art pieces from the Aru-
ba Art Fair.

“I was going to the beach every day to col-
lect the seashells to make the wings”, Omaira
remembers. She received help from American
artists Kim Wozniak and Laura Rendlen, who ac-
cepted the invitation to help with the project.
“That’s how you see how artists collaborate
with each other.”

But Omaira’s work is all over Aruba. Mosaik Art