Street Art and Intangible Heritage: a contextualising approach to public art in Vitoria-Gasteiz.

Abstract

This paper presents the results of ethnographic fieldwork carried out in the city of Vitoria-Gasteiz, capital of the Basque country, between the 4th and the 8th of December 2017. In the last decade, Vitoria-Gasteiz has become internationally known thanks to its urban gallery of public mural art. The murals of Vitoria-Gasteiz, in fact, were one of the main attractions of the city when it got the recognition of European Green Capital in 2012. They started being produced by the IMVG project in 2007 on the same basis of sustainability as the general agenda of the city. This cultural agenda became a world-class reference in the field of cultural heritage studies, management and the archaeology of architecture thanks to the project Abierto por Obras (Open for works) that integrated sustainability within the research and development processes of excavating, restoring, repairing, consolidating, documenting and exhibiting the Gothic cathedral of St. Mary through cultural interpretation. That program became an example of good practice recognized internationally and attracting people such as Ken Follet, who presented A World without End, his sequel to The Pillars of Earth, in the building. The emphasis on sustainability makes the IMVG an exceptional case-study within the current Street Art world, where normally expressions tend to be more ephemeral. One of the most singular aspects of the IMVG is its working methods based on community practice, social engagement and public participation. The combination of these particular features makes the IMVG an exceptional case in the Iberian peninsula, where many Street Art festivals and projects developed quickly and produced large pieces of public mural art in parallel to the IMVG since the 2000s.