Take yourself to the Barcelona metro missions: from the most far-fetched entrances to the most improvised actions. Feel first-hand, with the help of Ilícito, the stories of the Barcelona metro.
This period, 2019-2023, needed to be told, and not in any old way, but with the presence of the vast majority of writers who invested a lot of time and constant dedication in all the missions.
Hence the format of the most underground metro videos, where the missions follow one another in great detail, culminates in a video of more than 30 minutes in length. At a time when we are used to videos of less than 1 minute, full of cuts that leave a tiny sense of reality, this is a gem that stands out for its different approach and for being the result of long-term work. In addition, this experience has been transferred to book format: 420 pages with thousands of details and high-quality photographs.
Showing those ephemeral moments not only required the tireless attitude of each writer, but also the accompaniment and capture of all this, camera in hand. Thus, Ilícito’s work takes on this dimension and immortalizes an era as outstanding for the quantity as for the quality of graffiti in the Barcelona metro.
Long hours painting in counterpasses, night tunnels, sidings, and garages are joined by long waits to intercept the “curls”, which will undertake a unique trip without stops to the car wash. But none of this stopped the hunger to fill wagons with plastic paint and water-based sprays.
Neither the closed vents, which succumbed to hand-held radials or the 3000 degrees of a blowtorch; nor the wells through which they lowered themselves with ladders of more than 25 meters; nor the walls incapable of resisting the inertia of a 5 kilo sledgehammer could stop them, not to mention the details about guards and cameras.
The most remarkable thing – and what puzzles researchers or those who try to explain why all this happens – is that everything ends up in something as surprising as the absence of a true purpose. And if that purpose exists, it has nothing to do with economics. These stories only include challenges, passion and unforgettable moments. The rewards are intangible, and only the few images captured will remain for posterity.
