Mobility, Ephemerality and Tourist Economies: Graffiti Running Tours in León Guanajuato

• Bruce, Caitlin Frances ^[1]
  1. [1] University of Pittsburgh

     University of Pittsburgh

     City of Pittsburgh, Estados Unidos

     
• Localización: Debats: Revista de cultura, poder i societat, ISSN-e 2530-3074, ISSN 0212-0585, Nº 8, 2023 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Annual Review)
• Idioma: inglés
• Enlaces
  • Texto completo (pdf)
• Resumen

  • In this paper I explore the creation of a running tour showcasing commissioned Graffiti Art, or Urban Art, in León Guanajuato, Mexico. Founded in 2017, the tours are part of a larger economic and cultural shift away from the city's agricultural and industrial roots. Since the 1990s, León has pursued global city status while still trying to claim connections to “tradition.” Creative practices such as Urban Art help cultivate an attractive urban image. I argue that the tours dramatize three issues at the heart of both creative cities discourse and the challenges and the frictions that occur in institutionalizing graffiti, namely: mobility, ephemerality, and economy.