As Chavez and Maduro images disappear, is Venezuela entering a new chapter?
Murals, graffiti and billboards depicting Hugo Chávez and other chavista figures are being removed or covered across Caracas and replaced with blue-and-yellow banners promoting an outreach campaign called "Venezuela renace" (Venezuela reborn). The change is associated with interim President Delcy Rodríguez's effort to foreground reconstruction after June's deadly earthquakes and to build a political identity distinct from three decades of chavista rule.
Why It Matters
Public imagery has long signalled political continuity in Venezuela; the removal of Chávez iconography and the rollout of a new government slogan may indicate a shift in how the interim administration seeks to present itself domestically and internationally, at a moment of intense external pressure and post-quake reconstruction efforts.
Key Facts
- Campaign slogan: "Venezuela renace" (Venezuela reborn)
- Interim president: Delcy Rodríguez
- Event triggering campaign: Twin earthquakes on June 24 that killed at least 6,500 people
- Artist quoted: Victor Rodríguez (Forastero), who painted a Chávez mural for Chávez's birthday on July 28
- Palace of Justice: Portraits of Hugo Chávez and Simón Bolívar have been covered up there according to the report
Street-level art and official billboards in Caracas are changing. Murals and posters celebrating Hugo Chávez and other figures tied to chavismo have been painted over or removed in parts of the city, while bright blue-and-yellow signs carrying the phrase "Venezuela renace" have been posted on housing blocks and along motorways. The imagery shift is linked to an outreach push by interim President Delcy Rodríguez that began after the June earthquakes. Rodríguez has cast reconstruction as a central thread of her messaging; analysts say the new visuals are part of an attempt to be judged on rebuilding results rather than revolutionary lineage. The campaign’s appearance follows a period of intense external pressure on Venezuela’s government, including actions reported by the United States aimed at reshaping the country’s economic and political landscape. The move has exposed divisions within chavista ranks. Some officials have criticised covering revolutionary icons, while supporters of the new branding argue a fresh public identity is needed. Orlando Pérez, a political scientist cited in the report, said the debate reflects a broader contest over who controls the movement’s legacy and direction after almost three decades of chavista governance. Reactions among ordinary Venezuelans are mixed. Victor Rodríguez, known as Forastero, who created a Chávez mural for the leader’s birthday, said the former president opened doors for grassroots cultural production and regards painting Chávez now as an act of resistance. By contrast, a retiree in La Guaira who has faced rising prices, frequent power cuts and family losses in the earthquakes welcomed the disappearance of chavista images but said the new banners made him uneasy, illustrating the uncertain public response to the visual rebranding.
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