As an artist mentor and curator who came to Barcelona almost five years ago, I fell in love with this city: with its rhythm, its chaos, its layers of creativity. I decided to stay, to root myself here, and to help others do the same.

Through my own journey, and through the wisdom of friends — artists, curators, and cultural managers — I began to map the invisible system that holds us: the network of studios, galleries, printshops, cafés, and creative hubs that make up the living ecosystem of art in Barcelona.

That map has now become part of Artist Ally. If you are a subscriber, you have access to all our maps, such as the Photographer’s Map, the Makerspace Map and the Hospitalet Arts & Culture Map curated by cultural manager Ines Davide.

👉 Explore the Artist Maps — curated Google Maps for artists in Barcelona, featuring galleries, studios, makerspaces, and creative hubs built by and for the community. Access the Artist Maps below ⤵

Because we know that for international and immigrant artists, the first years can be hard, it can take two or three years to really understand how a new ecosystem works — to find your people, your opportunities, your rhythm.

So we asked ourselves: What if there was a guide?
A map made by artists, for artists. One that points you to the places that are open, supportive, and built by others who have walked the same path.

Our mission is simple: to make the path easier for those who come after us.

That’s what our Artist Ally Certified Allies are.
They are spaces curated by us: places that are immigrant-led, artist-run, and committed to collaboration, care, and access. They’ve built their practices and lives here from zero, and now they’re giving back: sharing their ethos, their knowledge, their opportunities.

Last Saturday, during our first A Tribe Called Art Quest: Artist Ally’s Scavenger Hunt, we saw this network come to life. Together with my co-founder, Blake, and a group of immigrant creatives, we walked through Raval and Sant Antoni visiting our allies — Casa Espacio, PrintHouse BCN, and 200CENT — and met the people behind these spaces.

It was beautiful to witness how much passion, intelligence, and humility they bring to what they do, and how open they are to supporting others.
They are truly here for the community, for our Circle, and for Barcelona.

Through this experience, I was reminded of something simple but powerful:
We live in a world full of closed doors.
So we must come prepared, with resilience, patience, and the right allies by our side.

The Art Quest showed us the potential of what we’re building together. These are people and spaces deeply rooted in collaboration and mutual care — the natural laws of any healthy ecosystem, artistic or otherwise.

And that’s an important lesson, too: art, like nature, thrives on mutuality. It’s a give-and-take relationship. It’s about exchange, not extraction. When we give back by showing up, collaborating, recommending, and supporting, we nourish the system that sustains us.

So I invite you to step outside, explore, and meet these people.
The real life — the real art world — is out there, beyond the screen.
And we are part of it.

Visit the spaces → Get to know them 
They were carefully chosen, each one an active force in Barcelona’s creative landscape. From Bulgaria to Argentina, from the UK to Chile, our allies are immigrant artists and culture workers just like us, contributing their roots, their perspectives, and their care to this city we now call home.

We’re here for you — and for your friends.
If you know someone who could benefit from this circle, please invite them.
Let’s grow this network together.

Explore the current Certified Allies and their Circle Perks on our new page