THE CITY AS AN IMAGINARY SPACE

This research tries to go deeper in the understudied topic of cultural impacts, specifically, in the cultural impact generated by the Guggenheim Museum on the city of Bilbao. Through a longitudinal approach, the study aims to understand the contribution of the Guggenheim museum to the evolution of the self-image of Bilbao. The methodology used for this purpose is mixed. On one hand, the qualitative part consists of 6 interviews to (5) cultural agents and (1) policy-maker. On the other hand, the quantitative part consists of secondary data that tackles the evolution of the citizens' perception towards their city and the evolution of public expenditure on culture. The results show the local pride has increased by the presence of the museum. Although the Guggenheim has become the icon of the city, it could be risky to say the source of the increased pride is the museum exclusively. Instead, we might need to say it is the success of the regenerational project as a whole what reinjected pride to the city; a project in which the museum is the icing of the cake. The Guggenheim has given the city a new reason to believe in itself and has strengthen its self-image, which might be the best cultural legacy for the continuity of good happenings occurring to the city in the long term. To conclude, the findings reveal that the improved self-image will be sustainable in the long term under some conditions.