Urban Scene Protection and Unconventional Practices—Contemporary Landscapes in World Heritage Cities of Spain

Juan A García-Esparza

doi:10.3390/land11030324

Abstract

This paper theoretically examines the extent to which visual perception has excluded alternative forms of culture in World Heritage cities and towns in Spain. To do so, an initial review is carried out of the UNESCO framework and criteria which establishes the outstanding universal value of Spanish cities and towns. This is followed by a review of minor concepts such as informality and creativity, which are related to alternative conceptions of culture and heritage. Thirdly, a review of the literature provides an overview of the appraisal of the social value in the heritage realm. This is achieved through the Historic Urban Landscape approach, which is adapted to specific forms of local appraisal. An analysis of policy helps explain the need to review principles of protection in terms of ethical evaluations. The analysis shows that outdated policies clash with contemporary assessment and participatory methods of heritage-making.

Highlights

This research aims to analyse the extent to which urban landscape protection is excluding alternative forms of culture in heritage sites, World Heritage (WH) cities and towns in Spain
The procedure looks for a truthful consideration of what inhabitants acknowledge as heritage and considers this social value among the historical and architectural ones
The outcome is a digital database of places, where the eventual presence and variations of characteristics allow future researchers to obtain quantitative statistics by further linking these values to others to be retrieved in relation to leisure and tourism

Summary

Introduction

This research aims to analyse the extent to which urban landscape protection is excluding alternative forms of culture in heritage sites, World Heritage (WH) cities and towns in Spain. The focus of the analysis is on cultural policy, as current heritage laws in Spain barely adapt to the requirements of contemporary urban values in heritage cities and towns. Among the UNESCO criteria established to nominate WH sites, Criteria ii and iii were applied homogeneously to five cities and towns in Spain. These two criteria are especially relevant as their definition allows interpretation in line with contemporary conceptualisations of heritage values [9]. Criterion ii refers to places that “exhibit an important interchange of human values over a span of time”, while Criterion iii explicitly outlines “the exceptionality of living cultural traditions or civilisations” [10]

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Conclusion