The Barri Vell of Girona has undergone a striking evolution over the past decades, transforming into a more valued and sophisticated area, with a price per square meter now around €3,700/m² and a 5.7% increase in the past year. This transformation reflects not only a shift in the urban landscape but also in the cultural soul of the neighborhood.

The exhibition Infralocus, curated by Eudald Camps and Jordi Mitjà, offers a critical reflection on the effects of the gentrification process that began in the 1980s. The show explores how the arrival of new residents and tourists has altered the cultural and social space of the Barri Vell, which once hosted artist communities and independent creative spaces.

These transformations affect not only real estate values but also the life and culture of the neighborhood. In the past, the Barri Vell was a hub for artistic experimentation, with free creative spaces such as Carrer dels Torrats, now transformed into a tourist and commercial attraction. The socioeconomic changes reflected in these prices reveal how Girona has embraced new urban dynamics while still maintaining, in gestures like the restoration of the Carrer dels Torrats mural, a connection to the neighborhood’s vibrant past.

This mural, restored by artists Pep Admetlla and Jordi Amagat as part of the exhibition, keeps alive the memory of a city in transformation—one that seeks to preserve its essence in an environment increasingly shaped by new urban and economic realities. Above all, it reminds us that despite these changes, Girona remains deeply rooted in creativity and alternative culture.

Girona, October 2024