Armando Goedgedrag, a natural born talent capturing Aruba’s nature
Once you have been a guest at Boardwalk you understand how everything during your guest journey and your hotel stay evolves around embracing and enjoying the local experience. From the indoor-outdoor living that the colorful Caribbean casitas offer to the setting amidst lush gardens that attract a wide variety of birds, butterflies and other fauna, to the use of local art to depict Aruba’s heritage, history and nature. With that in mind it won’t come as a surprise that we jumped on the opportunity to collaborate with one of the most talented painters of natural sceneries in Aruba, Armando Goedgedrag and integrate his artwork into our gardens’ public space.
About Armando Goedgedrag
Over the last decade Armando Goedgedrag rapidly became a household staple in Aruba’s local art scene and his name became synonymous for the most breathtaking realistic depictions of Aruba’s nature. Over the past decade his colorful artwork has transformed many public spaces in Aruba to captivating landscapes with rolling waves, diving turtles, flying parakeets, buzzing humming birds and staring shocos (Aruba’s unique burrowing owl). With his multimedia approach Armando captures the fascinating beauty of Aruba’s nature in film installations, such as can be seen behind the lobby bar at the Aruba Marriott, in stunning photography of Aruba’s flora, fauna and ocean waves that he shares on his Artmando Multimedia Instagram account, and on murals all over the island. Some of Armando’s eye-catching murals can be found at one of the most famous landmarks, Natural Bridge Aruba on the North Coast, at the Renaissance Marketplace in Oranjestad and in Aruba’s southern city San Nicolas.
Capturing nature at Boardwalk
Since March 2025 Boardwalk is the proud owner of its own Armando Goedgedrag original, an artwork that is on display in the heart of our gardens, next to the public seating area overlooking the water feature. To collect inspiration for this artwork, Armando took multiple photos of the flora and fauna in Boardwalk’s tropical gardens, each of them little pieces of art as well. He captured frequent flyers to our hotel garden such as the orange-breasted songbird Trupial, and the rapidly moving hummingbirds, along with crawling creatures as iguanas and lizards in all colors, shapes and sizes.
The calm and protected environment of Boardwalk’s garden filled with natural recourses makes for an ideal nesting area for hummingbirds and they churn out nests in our tropical oasis like clockwork. Tip: if you book our Sustainability Tour at the Front Desk we’ll show you where new bird nests have currently formed. Armando has a fondness for hummingbirds and with their abundant presence in Boardwalk’s garden it was only logical that he picked this mesmerizing bird as his focal topic for the artwork he was about to create.
The making of Armando’s artwork at Boardwalk
As his canvas, Armando repurposed a slice of wood from a fallen Kwihi tree, a local tree species, this way bringing an artistic tribute to both our property’s past as a coconut plantation and the vibrant ecosystem it nurtures today. On the wooden canvas he handpainted a hummingbird in flight, as well as a detail of a local flowering plant called Tuturutu in our local language Papiamento. This Tuturutu or peacock flower as it is called in English, carries flowers in vibrant yellow, red and green and at Boardwalk can be found at various locations in our garden, the most prominently visible one you’ll encounter near the main entrance gate at the parking lot. The Tuturutu is a year-round feast for the eye as well as for hummingbirds, butterflies and bees who feed off it’s nectar-rich flower. So now you also know why Boardwalk has so many butterflies and hummingbirds in its gardens: it’s one big open air buffet of nectar and pollination feast for these species! A fun recap of the making of Armando’s artwork at Boardwalk here
Nature preservation in Aruba
Just like the owners of Boardwalk, Armando Goedgedrag can be found in Aruba’s nature and surfing in the ocean in his spare time. As such an avid nature lover Armando is also a very active local citizen when it comes to nature preservation efforts in Aruba. As an artist, Armando sees it as his duty to inspire others by depicting the unique features and creatures of Aruba’s nature. By portraying the natural beauty of the island he hopes to also create more awareness for the vulnerability of Aruba’s nature, flora, fauna and natural resources. Boardwalk’s management wholeheartedly underscores the importance of nature preservation and has a wide variety of sustainability best practices in place, along with a Do Good Program for guests who would like to contribute to the local community they are visiting.
Collecting meaningful local art in Aruba
Boardwalk invited Armando Goedgedrag to create an artwork reflecting Aruba’s natural beauty. Armando took his assignment to the next level by repurposing a piece of local wood as his canvas, this way creating even more awareness for Aruba’s nature and natural resources. The new artwork by Armando is the latest addition to Boardwalk’s growing collection of local artworks that is on display throughout the property, in public areas and in every casita. It is part of Boardwalk’s mission to build an art collection reflecting our islands heritage and the quality and wide variety of local art in Aruba. Boardwalk's art collection is another way of sharing Aruba's cultural heritage with our guests, by supporting and endorsing local artists, as well as local art foundation Artesano. In the hotel lobby guests can purchase local products and local arts, crafts, jewelry and other products by local artisans as well.
