This project was born with the aim of providing an answer to the following question:
Is it possible to improve the relationship between tourism and the inhabitants of Barcelona?
The city has reached its growth limit due to geographical and historical reasons, yet it welcomes thousands of visitors daily, adapting its identity to offer a complete tourist experience. Despite some neighborhoods being overcrowded, making normal life difficult, tourism remains a key economic driver, creating a palpable dichotomy.
Tensions between foreigners and locals are increasingly high and coexistence seems to be an imposed necessity. This project aims to give voice to this relationship by objectively exposing both sides of the problem and discerning what the true dialogue that is generated is.
These are some of the pictures I took throughout the project. I wanted to show this dicotomy through them. Some of them expose the touristic side of the city, some the more traditional side and then how it all blends in.
Where does genuine identity end and pretense to sell an image begin? This project explores whether tourism undermines or defines Barcelona’s identity. The methodology involves documenting the visual and symbolic interactions between urban elements and people in a photobook, highlighting the need for a new tourism model to foster a better bond.