Murals and tourism: heritage, politics and identity

摘要

Murals are expressions on walls. Although sometimes on the interior of buildings, they are often cre-ated on exterior walls where they may be readily accessible to passers-by, both local and from afar. They are visual displays that range from graffiti to public art and may be protected and relatively enduring, or ephemeral as they are defaced, destroyed, painted over or succumb to the weather. They may be created for a variety of purposes, with the official blessing of governmental authorities or with subversive intent, as a means of protest and a way of undermining respect for those in power. Their meaning will vary with the perspective of the observer and change over time but, in many cases, they will be rooted in local issues and become a distinctive attribute of the place in which they are located. They may be interpreted by some as an expression of culture and a marker of auth-enticity. They are a visual resource that may be a tourism asset. However, usually this is not their primary purpose, although there are cases where they have been created and publicized as a tourism development strategy.