The streets of Hamilton were bursting with creativity this week as the island celebrated its second Bermuda Walls Mural Festival.

More than a dozen local and overseas artists turned slabs of blank building façades on the outskirts of the City into giant murals exploding with life and colour.

The event reached a climax yesterday with a street party on Woodlands Road where scores of revellers gathered to soak up the art and the atmosphere.

The festival has been designed to bring art out of museums and on to the streets. It was the brainchild of Spencer Butterfield, the chief executive of Butterfield & Vallis, in conjunction with production company Burnt House Productions.

Nhuri Bashir, the cofounder of Burnt House Productions, said: “It’s all about trying to do something different — to create a different vibe.

“I’m not saying that art in galleries is stuffy at all; it’s not — it’s important — but this festival is just one way of making art more accessible to people who might not go to an art gallery.”

Subject matter this year varied, with artists depicting anything from phantasmagorical creatures to reggae legend Bob Marley.

A formerly bare wall at The Royal Gazette was brought to life with a mural of a Gombey dancer as part of the festival.

The vibrant artwork was painted by Alex Lazich (artist name Bacon) and Richard Brasil (Hiero) who said they were looking to find a way to celebrate local culture.

Hiero, one of the founders of the festival, said: “Last year, I was introduced to the Gombeys and the people that celebrate that culture.

“What we like to do is celebrate the underdogs, the people that anchor into their communities that are often overlooked. What we wanted to do with this one was not to keep it person-specific but about the culture itself.

“The next one we are going to do is a specific gentleman and anchor it with that.”

Hiero added that there are many more local figures who would be perfect fits for future murals and plenty of open spaces to place them.

He and Bacon said they grew up with a passion for art and gradually moved into the world of graffiti and street art.

Bacon said: “I started graffiti at about 16 and slowly progressed to drawing bigger and bigger and bigger things.”

Hiero added: “We met at [art fair] Art Basel many years ago. We clicked right away and became friends. Then he asked me if I wanted to paint with him and I was honoured because he was already a big deal.

“From there, we kind of went on this journey of friendship, pushing each other to do the weirdest and craziest things, really just being there for each other and pushing each other to excel.

“Our early walls got a bit of notoriety, which gave us a lot of fuel to keep going and collaborate. It’s a match made in heaven.”

Hiero said that as part of last year’s inaugural Bermuda Walls, the objective was to set a foundation and build relationships between artists and the community.

“The first one was more of a start-up and just trying to get it going, meet the locals, get to know the culture and get the artists comfortable, both those from Bermuda and international,” he said.

“We wanted to get a good mix of people and get the word out that we are here and we are going to celebrate Bermuda.”

Bacon said it was an honour to be invited to the island, stating he knew little about Bermuda before he took part in last year’s festival.

“When I came here I was pleasantly surprised by how beautiful and friendly the people are on the island,” he said.

“To me, it’s a little slice of paradise and one of my favourite places in the whole world. Coming here to paint is quite a privilege and an honour.”