WMN meets BARCELONA
Barcelona is a stronghold of a cultural movement on the rise. As Catalonia was a region that enjoyed great economic prestige during the 19th century, intellectual development transformed it into a hub for artists and designers who have left a unique creative legacy.
Strolling through its streets is an absolute visual delight. Gaudí's legacy permeates avenues and parks, cohesively with other examples of architectural modernism. Among them, is the building that houses the Fundació Antoni Tàpies (Eixample), a benchmark of Catalan art and considered one of the most representative figures of informalism.
Beyond the urban bustle, Barcelona rests in the Mediterranean, in its calm rhythm and tranquility. Its landscape inspires and has inspired internationally renowned artists such as Joan Miró, another representative of Catalan avant-garde and who, like Tàpies, has a center for the study of his work, the Fundació Joan Miró, located in Montjuïc since 1975.
Barcelona's multicultural and diverse spirit gives way to countless musical events, among which Sónar and Primavera stand out, having both wide international recognition.
Sónar International Festival of Music, Creativity, and Technology is an electronic music festival that offers live concerts and multidisciplinary performances, as well as a space for co-creation in which the latest advances in music technology are exhibited.
Primavera Sound is an event committed to the latest musical trends in the independent scene, including artists of acclaimed renown in its lineup. In recent years it has managed to expand and hold the festival in different cities such as Oporto, Los Angeles, Santiago de Chile, Buenos Aires and São Paulo.
GENTRIFICATION AND PROTEST
Its eclecticism and popularity make Barcelona one of the most touristic cities in the world, bringing about a decline in the quality of life of its citizens and its own enjoyment as a visitor. This overwhelming tourism damages the city's local structure, which is why different communities are echoing to claim the unique character of such a precious urban spot. There are several initiatives and squats that cohabit historic spaces to combat standardization and gentrification:
ANTIGA MASSANA
A building that once housed the homonymous School of Design, which changed location and left its former enclave in disuse. Its privileged location behind the Boqueria market is an urban opportunity that the city council wants to take advantage of. However, a neighborhood movement has echoed and demanded the community's use of such a precious space. The former Massana was squatted in June 2020, when COVID generated a very vulnerable situation, to distribute food to those in need. From that moment on, other groups began to participate and take advantage of the space for social and community purposes.
There are also movements and groups for the protection of a disused industrial heritage that enjoyed its zenith in the city's industrialization during the nineteenth century. Can Batlló is one of those industrial sites that enjoyed international trade and greatly enriched the city but which, in the seventies and eighties, went into decline and passed to a better life. We visited particularly a former textile factory, which is in the process of future urbanization. However, the residents' community, in protest of the project's delays, gained access to the building and squatted one of the warehouses, which is now a self-managed community space. Can Batlló offers art exhibitions, cultural events, workshops, and performances, all away from Barcelona's excessive prices.
INDEPENDENT AND LOCAL ART AND CRAFTS
Many creatives gather in the streets to express themselves and share their work. Barcelona has one of the most important urban art contexts in the world, hosting murals of iconic figures such as Keith Haring, who made a piece making HIV visible ("All together we can stop AIDS"); or the well-known photomosaic of "The world is born in every kiss" (2014), by Joan Fontcuberta.
Wandering around its streets, we found different places that share art from new premises:
Walking through the Gothic Quarter we came across the textile craft and jewellery store Après Ski, a studio that makes clothing, accessories and unique objects taking as a reference diverse cultures and their folklore, revisiting tradition from a postmodern point of view.
Opening its creative window to a street in the Raval, Miscelánea presents itself as a platform for emerging creation. They carry out ephemeral interventions, inviting different creatives to share a monthly mural in the display window, as well as selling graphic work and holding exhibitions.
Between concept store and café, House of Rowdy, in Poblenonu, is the materialization of a magazine that appears in 2019 whose aim is to share artists' and creatives' work from different doctrines. It is a space where the sale of vintage clothing pieces, independent publications and a selection of unique objects converge. They also have a small coworking space where they carry out artistic residencies with creatives from different parts of the world.
NEW COFFEE CULTURE
As one of the most emblematic cities in Europe, it could not miss a growing culture of speciality coffee shops, where design and care for every detail are essential. In our exploration we found, in a narrow street in the Gothic Quarter, Satan's Coffee Corner, with infinite blue ceilings and walls that combine perfectly with the pastel pink benches.
In the neighbourhood of Sant Antoni we recommend a cosy and charming spot, Café Cometa, which exhibits pieces by emerging artists and is committed to independent initiatives, using the coffee of a new Roastery in Barcelona, Orbita, with exquisite branding.
And lastly, we visited Poblenou, an area in constant cultural evolution that houses art studios and creative workshops. There, we discovered Syra Coffee (another important local Coffee Roastery) at Itnig, a coworking space that cohabits with the growing needs of remote work. On the building's ground floor, the coffee shop opens its doors to the public to enjoy a space where completely innovative design meets speciality coffee culture.
A FEMALE-LED CO-WORKING
On one side of Avinguda Diagonal, at the back of what could be an unnoticed building, hides the imposing façade of Juno House, the first women's club in Barcelona. It is located in a historic industrial building from the early twentieth century, in what was the old La Farinera de Aribau, a location that gives it a unique and charismatic character.
ICONIC BARS
And finally, we want to share our favourite place to enjoy a spring evening: Antic Teatre, located in a building more than 350 years old in the neighbourhood of Sant Pere del Casc Antic. Its terrace is located in one of the peculiar courtyards full of plants that are a feature of central Barcelona.