Everyone has strong feelings about the place they live but what seems exotic to the tourist can be commonplace or even dull to a local. However, tourism can invigorate the local economy. New interest at home for the same old landmarks can be sparked when viewed through the eyes of a visitor. World events and political differences can pale when compared to an important local issue such as “Which restaurant in the Paseo del Prado is the best?”

From tips for tourists to diatribes on politics, SOY MADRID, will be a formal platform for a collaboration between Madrid residents and tourist artists Grennan and Sperandio.

Through newspaper advertisements, word of mouth and a dedicated web site, SOYMADRID.COM, artists Grennan and Sperandio will invite residents of to Madrid to tell their stories about Madrid. The artists will then present selected stories as bright and colorful comic strips written in Spanish and English.

Political or lighthearted, serious or frivolous, fun or just weird, these interventions, when encountered, will give natives and visitors alike the opportunity to reconsider the conflicting issues surrounding notions of local identity, nationalism, politics and tourism.

The resultant comics will be reproduced in a variety of media, including posters, comic strips in local papers and on-line. A main feature of SOY MADRID is a collaboration with a local paper. Stories for the project will be solicited via this paper, and selections from the finalized comic strips will be printed in this paper as well.