How did Hoy, your new book, come about?

What people don’t know is that this book, which is about a day trip, was meant to be very different. At first, I thought of it as a tour of Barcelona, but I imagined it much more fictional, with trips to the past and to the future – I visited the Barcelona of other times... However, at that time, I lost a friend (the book is dedicated to him) and, as I mourned him, it made a 180° turn. When I have to write and draw, I always need to do it through the stage of life I’m in, and so I thought I didn’t need to turn to fiction, I needed to turn to the reality of everyday life. At that time, with death so present in my life, I used it as an engine to make an ode to all those days when nothing happens.

Why did you choose Barcelona as the setting for the novel?

It’s where I live. I feel that this book would have come about the same way if I lived in Madrid or Chacabuco, because, ultimately, it’s just a stroll through the city where I have spent the last 25 years. However, in my case I have the great good fortune of living in a beautiful city. My aim was for anyone reading this book to wander through the streets where they live and find beauty there. I didn’t want to create a book telling readers they must come and visit Barcelona, but I did choose it as a setting as a way to push them, within their contexts, to go out and explore their own environments.

How did you choose the places in the city that appear in Hoy?

Barcelona is beautiful, but I wanted to walk through the spaces I usually walk through. Places that aren’t very touristy, because that’s what I prefer to do when I travel. I like to see how the people live there, I like to see the authenticity of each city, eat what is eaten in each place... I wanted to show the Barcelona I inhabit, the neighbourhoods, the little-known parks, the long-standing ice-cream shops, the old family-run stores.

 

Is there some spot that’s especially dear to you?

There are some that are very obvious, such as when I am in the Jardins de Laribal or in the Teatre Grec. But there’s a scene that might be a little nod to myself, one I’ve never mentioned before: when I’m walking, balancing on a kerb with my friend Loli, there’s a building façade that’s round. That was my view in my first house in Barcelona – what I saw every day from my window.

Can a city in which you have lived for more than 20 years continue to surprise you?

Of course! The other day I told my partner that I’d been walking past a beautiful terrace for years and I had never noticed how lovely its flowers were until then. I feel like almost every time we’re walking from one place to another, we have to use the time to resolve issues, answer a message, send an audio, send an email... That is why I conceived this book as a tool for training our gaze, so that we can find a moment to rest it and choose what to observe on a daily basis.

What was your latest experience when you stopped to observe?

I was in Rome recently and, as I waited to see St Peter’s Basilica through the Order of Malta’s Peephole, I realised that everyone had lifted their cameras before even looking with their own eyes. Eventually, after waiting for so long, we ended up going to the Orange Trees Garden. I met a painter, shared a very nice moment with him and bought one of his paintings. I felt that sometimes life asks you to do that, to deviate from the established plan, even if only for a day. This is what this book is all about.

Has Barcelona changed much since you moved there 25 years ago?

Yes, but I’ve also changed along with it. For instance, when you have a child you start experiencing the city in a different way; you discover new places because you make different plans. I feel that we are both organic, that we are adapting to each other. The only thing that saddens me is seeing how overcrowded it’s become, how hard it is to live here, how it feels as if we’re being pushed out…

What does this graphic novel present that is different to your other six works?

Firstly, the character in La Volátil, which most people knew me by, no longer reflected my identity. El Viaje and La Compañera were two books I completely opened myself up with, but now I see the character from a distance as a more childlike caricature. I was afraid to move on from La Volátil because she was in such a sweet spot with the public, but I realised that the one who was strong was me as an author, that I had to make the leap with my followers, because they also changed and I had to accompany them. In Hoy, I wanted to show a character with a more female, more real physiognomy (and this new body was very difficult to draw). Secondly, I believe that the book is a product of the times we live in. After two very intense books, I was a bit afraid that no one would be interested in this one, where almost nothing happens. It’s just me walking around. However, I realised that this was a book in which I could escape that need to always tell impactful stories. I hear everyone around me running, but not living. When the recent blackout happened, I was making a clean copy of this book and I saw how we were all celebrating it. People need to be disconnected, to not always be available, to not always be productive. Society is already demonstrating that this is something it wants.