This Friday, the national band carried out an emotional activity in memory of René Olivares, their friend, historical collaborator and essential figure in the graphic and aesthetic development of the group, who died last October 13 in Paris.
It was in the area of the Los Jaivas mural, located at the Puente Cal y Canto station, where family, friends, artists, followers and authorities gathered to remember him.
The members of Los Jaivas -Juanita Parra and Mario Mutis- were the first to share memories and words in honor of their partner.
In her speech, Juanita pointed out: “We are here in the subway, at the Cal y Canto station, where it is the mural that René could have left behind while he was alive. A gigantic mural that tells not only our history as a group, but also the history of the native peoples, the Inca Trail, which actually passed through this same place.“.
Tribute from Los Jaivas to René Olivares
“We are here to honor life, everything that René left done for us, for humanity, for the universe. He gave colors. René made it possible for the music of Los Jaivas to be seenwhich is an act of magic, for which we are grateful,” added the artist.
For his part, Mario Mutis expressed: “We are going to miss him a lot and we are going to need him a lot in the future as well. So this is a small tribute to the same place where he was personally painting in 2023, when he finished this wonderful work and I hope it will be there for many years to come.”
The ceremony also included the participation of musicians Claudio Parra and Francisco Bosco, the Minister of Cultures, Arts and Heritage, Carolina Arredondo, the executive director of the Metro Arte Cultural Corporation, Javier Pinto and the executive director of the Lira Arte Público Foundation, Esteban Barrera Olmedo.
In that context, Minister Arredondo also expressed a few words highlighting the deep mark that the artist left on Chilean culture and the close connection between his work and the visual identity of Los Jaivas.
“When you see René’s colors, you can immediately understand that you are seeing Los Jaivas and, therefore, their sound comes to mind,” highlighted the minister.
“He is captured in the graphic image of one of the most iconic musical groups in our country, so his art and his painting is also part of the graphic memory of Chile,” he added.
Art of the nicknamed “sixth Jaiva”
Nicknamed the “sixth Jaiva”, he was the author of the band’s iconic logo, most of their album covers, and the band’s Historical Mural, inaugurated in 2023 in the same place as the ceremony.
That—a monumental work 30 meters long by 6 meters high, created together with the Lira Arte Público studio and financed by Bizarro Live Entertainment—was conceived as an artistic legacy for the city of Santiago and the new generations, reflecting the union between music and the visual arts that characterizes the group.
“The most valuable thing was seeing how René’s gaze became a shared workshop: a living dialogue with the painters, made of patience, humor and accuracy. From my role as manager and curator of public art, this tribute is a deep gratitude,” said Esteban Barrera.
“Together with Los Jaivas, Metro, authorities, family and friends, we honor an artist whose work will continue to illuminate the city. Today we say goodbye to him; his lesson remains on the wall, in our memory and in our hearts,” he added.
Day marked by emotion and music
Finally, Javier Pinto also joined in the words, pointing out “(with René) We saw each other from cane to cane when he was painting the mural – and although the painters who were building were young artists – he was absolutely on top of the scaffolding in spirit.”
“These walls and this space are colored by René Olivares. For us it is a commonplace to say ‘where René’s mural’. So I want to thank Los Jaivas once again for their effort,” he concluded.
The day was also marked by emotion and music: the documentary “René Olivares: Epiphanies for a kingdom of sweetness” was shown, which covers the life and work of the artist.
Along with this, Gaspar Olivares, René’s grandson, performed a piece on the accordion. He was joined by soprano Pilar Aguilera, accompanied by Francisco Bosco’s saxophone.
Finally, the ceremony culminated with a poem by the poet “El Grillo” and the presentation of the Bolero Trio by Esteban Jara.
