The cathedral of Barcelona has withdrawn this week the controversial advertisement of the facade that covered the canvas of the scaffolding. It has done so practically a month ahead of schedule "at the request of the advertiser", say sources from the cathedral. The withdrawal of advertising occurs after a protest action by a group of students from the Brother creativity school, who pasted posters around the temple with a QR code that allowed the cathedral to be seen without the advertisement. The initiative was amplified in the networks until it coincided with the withdrawal of advertising.
From the cathedral they claim to not know the reason why the mobile phone advertiser has decided to withdraw the ad. The same sources insist that, despite the criticism, the canvas "was legally installed and the Barcelona City Council gave a license until May 15", the date on which the works are expected to be finished. Its installation was not exempt from debate and from the cathedral they maintain that the income from this publicity has been used to finance the restoration work.
The action of the three students, between the ages of 24 and 26, was raised from the beginning as an element of pressure and to question the suitability of the advertisement on the façade of the monument. The work, entitled 'Adeu Ad', consisted of pasting posters on the walls of neighboring buildings, at the entrances to the parking lot and also on the ground in front of the cathedral, with slogans such as "There is a bit of a cathedral on your billboard" or “A lot of smartphone for such a little smart billboard” and the QR code. The QR contained an Instagram filter that simulated the part of the facade that was covered by the ad.
"The action consisted of a creative application of an exercise that they had done in class and it has had a lot of coverage on social networks," explains the head of culture at the Brother school, Paula Cornejo. That same Tuesday, when going to check the state of the posters in case they had to be replaced, the students themselves echoed the withdrawal of the advertisement.
