The piece reflects on representation and, consequently, the role of art – specifically that of Spanish Orientalist painters (in particular M. Fortuny) – in the creation and reproduction of stereotypes regarding Moorish otherness. To this end, it draws on the dislocation created by the inverse dialogue between the neon text and the images surrounding it.

Whilst the neon sign displays a quote from F. Fanon: ‘The colonizer’s feet are never shown bare’; the surrounding images depict scenes from drawings and engravings by Mariano Fortuny, in which the colonized are always shown with bare feet.

The colonizer’s moral and civilizational superiority must extend to all spheres, including clothing as a fundamental aspect, since it enables the immediate recognition of otherness.

This piece was created for the solo exhibition Sentimental Architectures, at the Reus Museum, where it was exhibited in dialogue with Fortuny’s original engravings.