Barcelona Photoblog: la rambla
Showing posts with label la rambla. Show all posts
Showing posts with label la rambla. Show all posts

April 15, 2009

Human Statues: Make-Up Time

Human statue putting some make-up on her face [enlarge]

When you are trapped in the living stream of Las Ramblas and you are shoved along the way from one end to another you probably don't have time to reason out the evidence that human statues are not part of the urban furniture. They are not part of a permanent exhibition either. No one comes and unloads the statues from a truck to gently place them on their improvised pedestals early in the morning. They are anonymous Barcelona citizens, made of flesh and bones, permanent residents or temporary visitors who rely on such unstable and tedious activity to make a living. They have their assigned areas, their timetable, their official permit. To attain that wonderful final look we are all familiar with they sometimes need more than an hour to be ready. It is not strange to see them arrive partly dressed to save time. After all the preparation which may include wearing tons of make-up and fitting into impossible costumes it may happen that the weather suddenly plays tricks on them and spoils the performance. Of course no insurance company will compensate for the cancellation of the show nor will the city hall sympathy with their cause. Las Ramblas certainly wouldn't be that great without the living statues so any help to pay for such painful and respectable effort is always more than welcome. Of course I don't tip them if I capture them before the acting begins as in this image but when they are on "stage" I try not to sneak between tourists to steal a picture from them. A good smiling face, nicely caught in connivance with the camera after you have expressed your gratitude can really make the difference.




October 16, 2008

Jogging in La Rambla, Barcelona

Jogging in La Rambla, Barcelona
Jogging in Las Ramblas de Barcelona is so difficult that instead of that we should call it dribbling or slalom. In spite of that, stubborn athletes you can find all year long in any part of the world. I don't know, you are in the middle of a safari in Africa and suddenly you see a jogger waving at you right behind the lions.

Joggers do take it very seriously sometimes. An old man may be mugged in a dark suburban street while a person in a hooded sweater passes by swiftly as a ghost in a Japanese horror movie, unaware of the crime and lost in that podcast on the benefits of sports, so lost that may even end up in the most transited and smoggy street of the city.

In our case here, there was some kind of cosmic impasse and for some milliseconds there was no one near the jogger, probably due to the use of a special force field or protective shield invisible to the human eye. Come to think of it, she was just a lucky tourist on the wrong street.

October 06, 2008

Las Ramblas: The Most Frequented Street in Barcelona

Crowded Las Ramblas in Barcelona on Sunday morning

Las Ramblas, a small scale Catalan version of the Champs Elysées, is perhaps Barcelona's most frequented street and not precisely by the locals. Hordes of tourists wander up and down around the clock under the plataneros (hybrid plane trees) of the famous walk. This is how it looked on a Saturday morning last month. Recently, authorities met the local guild of stall owners to listen to their complaints and they have started cleaning Las Ramblas from pickpockets, trileros (a sort of shell game swindlers) and other petty criminals. In return the stalls will be replaced more than a meter backwards so they are not another obstacle in the way. Workers alleged that the living statues are also responsible for jamming the area as each of them gathers their own circle of admirers. Besides, there is the ever growing number of visitors. Did you know that according to a recent report by Saffron Brand Consultants, Barcelona is the third most attractive city for tourism, business and foreign investment after Paris and London from a list of 72 European cities. The data was obtained after interviewing 2000 people and considering different factors such as location, culture, history, food, business potential and residents attitude towards visitors.

Now for you to rejoice here are some breathtaking shots: The Earth From Above via The Boston Globe

September 01, 2008

Street Artists: Las Ramblas Clown, Barcelona

Street Artists: Las Ramblas Clown, Barcelona [enlarge]

Among dozens of human statues in Las Ramblas de Barcelona you may now and then find other "minor", less sophisticated and striking ways of artistry equally respectable and venerable as is the case of the Clown. See this artist in context using my geotagged Barcelona photos set on Flickr.

February 22, 2008

Biker and Skeleton in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain

Biker and Skeleton in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain [enlarge]

A familiar human statue in Las Ramblas de Barcelona, the man with the skeleton, pedaling both at the same time. I was used to watching him or them dressed in other colors, check it here: Human Statue in Las Ramblas - Biker. He had no problem posing for the camera after the coin hit the bottom of the can.

February 09, 2008

Small Colorful Bouquets of Paper Flowers in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain

Small Colorful Bouquets of Paper Flowers in Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain

In trying to keep the colorful posts cause I think most of all like bright colors, at least that's my impression, I chose a bunch of small paper flower bouquets on sale at the stalls along Rambla dels Flors. I am not happy with the level of detail, that is, upon taking a very close look at the flowers but it was almost dark, I had to fire my flash, ask for permission to shoot, watch not to be shoved onto the flowers by passerbies, hold one cigar in my left hand which the stall owner asked me to keep an eye on and last but not least finish fast so my wife and daughter didn't get too tired of waiting.

February 05, 2008

Save the Earth: Portrait of Human Statue in Las Ramblas, Barcelona

Safe the Earth: Portrait of Human Statue in Las Ramblas, Barcelona [enlarge]

Again we rescue an old character from the archives in an unpublished shot. This time is Mother Nature's turn or at least that's his name the way I see it. It's some sort of tree holding a transparent sphere almost hidden in this picture but totally visible in my original post: Street Artists in Las Ramblas - Human Statue
PS: Remember these pictures look much better if enlarged.

September 19, 2007

Mermaid Captured in La Rambla, Barcelona

Mermaid Human Living Statue in La Rambla, Barcelona

This mermaid was captured with my Nikon D70s while fishing for human statues along La Rambla, Barcelona. Fishy things there were indeed in the sea of tourists, like pickpockets or trileros trying to swindle people with cards, but those were dangerous species to play with. Besides I felt charmed and subdued by the irresistible chant. I tried to tie myself up to a lamp post and covered my ears like some modern Ulises but then she pulled out a small jewel box covered in shells, insinuated a smile and I succumbed. One more euro!

September 14, 2007

Spanish Paintings in Las Ramblas, Barcelona: Collage

Spanish Paintings in Las Ramblas, Barcelona: Collage [enlarge]

Here is a collage of Spanish paintings about topics such as bullfighting and flamenco plus some everyday scenes of Barri Gotic or El Raval streets, two quarters nearby Las Ramblas in Barcelona. Paintings like these are frequently ignored by Barcelonians and I guess this happens in other cities like say Paris, London...,but they obviously trap tourists like ants on a sugar lump. I don't say it isn't art but they are mostly centered on cliches and contribute to enhance them. When we visit Paris or London they do the same to us and we bite on the bait! Come to think of it I would do the same if I were to paint for money. So this is not the artist's fault, it is the cultural authorities' responsibility to promote a more representative art without forgetting, and I stress this, the cliches which are also part, in this case, of Spanish culture.

September 13, 2007

Seasoned Human Statue Sitting in Las Ramblas, Barcelona

Profile of seasoned human statue in Las Ramblas

Yet another street artist or human statue I captured while walking down Las Ramblas towards the sea. The weathered man was sitting on this chair showing off his painted clothes and glasses while he read a book. I couldn't really tell if he was sleeping or watching you drop a coin on the can cause his eyes were hidden behind a thin orange coat of paint in the middle of the spectacles. The whole disguise made him look elegant, like some famous writer, maybe he was some sort of Kafka. He wouldn't say being a statue and all.
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