Landscape and Cultural Identity in Spain

The meaning of the word landscape has gradually changed over time, to the point that today it has become a complex and polysemic concept, whose interpretation depends on the context, subject area and authors’ point of view. Landscape is understood to be the interconnection of space, time and society with their perception and expression in culture, infused in visible and invisible, material and immaterial ways. The natural landscape gives rise to the cultural landscape, which in turn includes the material, humanized, constructed and designed landscape, as well as the imagined, interpreted and depicted one. Spain should be experienced through its landscapes and the sea. Mountains, hills, deserts and wastelands, continental and marine waters, mild and harsh climate, countryside, towns and cities are all full of memories, feelings and meanings that hold the keys to unlocking Spain’s identity. It is impossible to imagine and experience Spain without the sea: it is part of its spatial (geographical), temporal (historical) and cultural life. El Ser español — «being Spanish» is always marked by the sea. The sea is an entire cultural heritage where particular attitudes, feelings and circumstances interact. The relevance of this heritage is such that it is necessary to propose a new specific Spanish term for a «seascape» — maresaje. The Spanish landscape has its own languages and different interpretations. Travelers, geographers, poets, artists, writers and many others have found their creative destiny in landscape, building a personal and artistic relationship with their vision of space and nature. Landscape is a notebook in which the path of a society is written and rewritten; it is a historical totalizer, but also a compass for charting a course, preserving historical memory, and protecting national identity.

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