Approaching the Kiss of Freedom mural in Plaça d’Isidre Nonell you’d be forgiven for assuming it’s a large graffiti. As you get closer, you’ll realise that it is, in fact, a mosaic made up of thousands of tiny ceramic tiles. Each individual tile is printed with a photo of a person, a place, a moment, an event or something which in some way represents an expression of freedom.
El Món Neix en Cada Besada (The World Begins With Every Kiss)
The photo mosaic was designed by Joan Fontcuberta using images snapped by local residents. Local newspaper El Periodico asked people to send photos representing “a moment of freedom”. The resulting mural, which measures 8m x 3.8m, was installed in 2014 as part of Barcelona’s Tricentenary celebrations commemorating the fall of Barcelona during The War of The Spanish Succession.
A plaque next to the mosaic quotes Oliver Wendell Holmes:
The sound of a kiss is not as loud as that of a cannon, but it’s echo lasts a great deal longer.
The Tricentennial website has a zoom-able photo where you can see each individual tile.
Location
Plaça d’Isidre Nonell, Barcelona
How to Get There
The nearest metro stations are Jaume I (L4) and Catalunya (L1 and L3)
Other Attractions Nearby
- Barcelona Cathedral
- The Gothic Quarter
- Plaça de Ramon Berenguer el Gran
- El Call (Jewish Quarter)
- Plaça de Catalunya
Map
08002 Barcelona, Barcelona, España
Thanks so much for sharing the beauty of this place. Just want to give you a little tip, the spelling of Holmes’ quote is, “The sound of a kiss is not so loud as that of a cannon, but its echo lasts a great deal longer.”
(A canon is something different than a cannon.) :)
Hi Lois,
Thanks for your comment and for pointing out the spelling mistake.
Hello. I would greatly appreciate your help in finding a large poster of the freedom wall. I cannot find to purchase online.
The mural “OF A KISS”
You also mentioned my email will NOT be shared. Thank you.
Hi Peggy,
I’m not aware of anywhere that you can buy posters of El Món Neix en Cada Besada but I’ll keep a look out and if I see them for sale anywhere in Barcelona or online I’ll post details here.
Don’t worry about you’re email, I hate spam as much as anyone and don’t sell or share emails.