Separated by almost two decades, the large-scale social mobilizations known
as El siluetazo and El argentinazo have been understood by some scholars
as watershed moments in Argentine politics. At these times of heightened
political contestation, it has been possible to observe a dissolution of the
status quo and the emergence of new or alternative political paradigms. Less
recognized, however, is the central role that ‘the aesthetic’ has played within
such processes of political transformation. By focusing on the spectacular
outpouring of street art that accompanied these two protest events, the
chapter aims to illuminate some of the analytical gaps and grey areas that
exist between art, aesthetics and social movement studies today.