Identidad y Turismo: Picture Postcards From Mallorca

It was one photographer in particular who documented the tourist development of Mallorca in the mid-20th century. From the Playa de Palma in the 50s, a narrow street along deserted dune landscape. To the hotel pools and lively beaches only twenty years later. With his pictures Josep Planas i Montanyà shaped the image of Mediterranean tourism in the Balearic Islands like no other. These days, Palma’s magnificent Museum Can Balaguer presents a fine selection of Planas’ work dealing with the idea of „Identidad y Turismo“.

For the first time you can also marvel at some of his working tools, an impressive collection of photo and film cameras from all over Europe. The postcard motifs send the viewer on a journey back to the beginnings of modern tourism. But the photos of Josep Planas i Montanyà also show how the onset of mass tourism has permanently changed face and identity of Mallorca.

The exhibition curated by the Casa Planas archive is accompanied by activities in El Arenal under the title “Memorial Litoral” designed by Marina Planas, Josep’s granddaughter. “Identidad y Turismo” as well as “Memorial Litoral” run until the end of August 2021, admission is free.