Barcelona
CHAPTER PREFACE:
A CHARACTER’S ACCOUNT OF BARCELONA
“Barcelona, what a city. I could say so much about Barcelona; its reputation precedes me with its Gaudí, Gothic Quarter, famous Boqueria market, mountains on one side, sea on the other, and grid-like pattern with wide streets and open air.
The summers I spent living in Barcelona were divine, with beautiful memories of the views of the city from a high point at Monjuïc, the people rollerblading on the promenade near the beach, the harbor full of sailboats, the festivals in Gràcia full of people dancing on the street until the wee hours of morning, and having beers in Plaza del Sol.
I even joined a run club one and we’d run through the Arc, down the streets and end up at Barceloneta beach. Barcelona also has a lively philosophical community, a gathering of intellectuals and great minds.
But really, I loved being free in Barcelona, ah, the freedom. They say youth is wasted on the young, but I did no such wasting in Barcelona.”
ON THE WALL:
(ACTUAL BOOK TEXT)
Future
I am a traveler from the future, writing into the past.
To delight in a laugh I heard here long ago.
To have a replay of that summer morning when I took that slow rambling bus down Carrer de Corsega to class.
We stood talking in the grassy rectangle at Passeig de Sant Joan for an hour. A million people could’ve walked by and I wouldn’t have noticed.
You took me to the highest points in the city, where we could see both mountain and sea.
Remember when we drank water at the same time out of a street fountain? In other places, people were still attempting escape, but in Barcelona, you and I already lived free.
I am a traveler from the past writing into the future.
To delight in the exuberance that awaited me long ago.
To dream another dream.
Futur
Sóc una viatgera del futur que escriu en el passat.
Per delectar-me en la rialla que fa temps vaig sentir aquí.
Per reviure aquell matí d’estiu en què vaig agafar l’autobús que circulava a poc a poc pel carrer de Còrsega fins a l’aula.
Vam parlar durant una hora al rectangle de gespa del passeig de Sant Joan. Encara que hi haguessin passat un milió de persones, jo no me n’hauria adonat.
Em vas portar als punts més alts de la ciutat, des d’on es veien la muntanya i el mar.
Recordes quan tots dos vam beure aigua alhora d’una font del carrer? En altres llocs la gent encara intentava fugir, però a Barcelona tu i jo ja vivíem lliures.
Sóc una viatgera del passat que escriu en el futur.
Per delectar-me en l’exuberància que des de fa molt temps m’esperava.
Per somiar un altre somni.
BEHIND THE TEXT
This page was created by etching into brass, a technique used by armor makers and Renaissance artists. Brass has been used for jewelry, coins, and instruments. It was also used for commemoration - life memorials, university plaques, and plates to mark significant historical events.
This piece is titled “Future” to subvert the use of metal for only marking the past.
This piece was created in a metalwork studio in the Gothic Quarter of Barcelona. It was written in Catalan, the native language of Barcelona, and mounted at Llibreria Documenta, a heritage Catalan bookstore established in 1975.