Barcelona is perhaps the European city which has become most renowned for successfully "remaking" of itself in the last 20 years. This image has been spread cumulatively round the world, by books, television, internet sites, as well as by films and use of the city in advertisements. This book is about the reality behind that image. It describes how the governors, professional planners and architects, and in a wider sense the people of the city and of Catalonia, brought about the succession of changes which began in about 1980. Transforming Barcelona is made up of chapters by those involved in the changes and local experts who have been observing the changes year by year. Particular emphasis is placed on the political leadership, and on the role of professionals, especially architects, in catalysing and implementing urban change. Other chapters look closely at the way that the treatment of public space became a key ingredient of what has been termed the "Barcelona model". Critiques of this model consider from different perspectives - environmental, cultural and from a long term historical understanding - how far the generally acclaimed successes stand up to full analysis.
The book is fully illustrated and contains an up-to-date bibliography of writing on the city in English. This book will be of particular interest to those studying or practising in the fields of urban regeneration, urban design and urban geography, as well as all those fascinated by the multiple dimensions of the current transformation of older cities. No other book is available in Englishwhich provides such extensive understanding of Barcelona from authoritative local participants and observers. Mari Paz Balibrea, Jaume Barndad, Nuria Benach, Oriol Bohigas, Jordi Borja, Joan Busquets, Nico Calavita, Oriol Clos, Juli Esteban, Amador Ferrer, Pasqual Maragall, Tim Marshall, Zaida Muxi, Oriol Nel