If you see Alejandra Bustamante at work, don\u2019t hesitate to say hello.<\/p>\n
She\u2019s hard to miss. Often, she\u2019s outdoors, painting a vibrant mural of sea life, palms or beaches across an exterior wall. Though clearly focused on her craft, Bustamante welcomes conversation.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really enjoy connecting with people,\u201d she says. \u201cCreating a mural is a great way to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
That approach has served her well as she has found growing success as a muralist. Bustamante is currently creating a series of a dozen murals in the style of retro postcards on the walls of South Seas resort on Captiva Island.<\/p>\n
Originally from Lima, Peru, Bustamante moved to Southwest Florida about 20 years ago and built a career in marketing. While she had always nurtured an artistic side \u2014 painting and drawing for her own enjoyment \u2014 she was largely self-taught and uncertain that art would become a profession.<\/p>\n
Her first mural appeared on the side of a building at an agency where she worked at the time, off West First Street in Fort Myers. The pink flamingo framed by green foliage quickly caught the attention of passersby, who stopped to talk or snap photos. Bustamante was happy to engage, and those conversations soon led to additional mural projects.<\/p>\n
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After being laid off following Hurricane Ian, Alejandra Bustamante found new opportunity as businesses rebuilt \u2014 including a major mural commission at South Seas resort.<\/p>\n
Brian Tietz<\/p>\n
\u201cI had people say, \u2018You should do this for a living,\u2019\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019d say, \u2018That\u2019s crazy, I need a paycheck.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
When Hurricane Ian struck, Bustamante was laid off. What followed, however, was an unexpected turning point. As businesses rebuilt after the storm, many sought creative ways to enhance newly refurbished spaces. Bustamante began picking up more work, including the South Seas project, as the resort underwent extensive renovations.<\/p>\n
She has continued to grow her business by cultivating relationships and marketing herself through venues such as the Fort Myers Art Walk. She also launched her own marketing business, Brandbug, where she helps business owners understand how artwork, including murals, can help shape their identity.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just enjoying the journey,\u201d she says. \u201cI feel like I\u2019m creating something positive in the world.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you see Alejandra Bustamante at work, don\u2019t hesitate to say hello. She\u2019s hard to miss. Often, she\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":214256,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[97766,209,211,210,3788,97765,97767,1521],"class_list":["post-214255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cape-coral","tag-alejandra-bustamante","tag-cape-coral","tag-cape-coral-headlines","tag-cape-coral-news","tag-captiva-island","tag-muralist","tag-south-seas-resort","tag-southwest-florida"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214255"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214255\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/214256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=214255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=214255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}