Poor Tourism

'When Michelangelo was painting the Sistine Chapel, Pope Julious II wanted him to spread rich colours and gold on the frescoes he was re-touching. 'Holy Father', he said pointedly, 'in those days men did not bedeck themselves in gold, and those you see painted there were never rich. They were holy men who despised riches.'

Inside the Vatican

Many desire to escape their day to day life when they decide to go on holiday, for a week or maybe two, you can journey to a beach, an exciting new city or perhaps a ski resort and enjoy some time out from the monotony and hardships of life back at home. My proposed project seeks to explore how the homeless, poor, or those with very little might enjoy a similar type of escapism from their day to day life. The project is about a radical yet logical shift in the Vatican's approach to tourism in their country.

Sunday morning mass in St Peters Basilica, Vatican City you will find grand, luxurious spaces, elaborate rituals and a large number of holiday makers recording the scene. However not far from St Peters Square you will find the homeless sleeping on the streets, the old begging and people selling what they can to passers by. 

A quarter of buildings in central Rome are owned by the Vatican, the holy see receives about £50million a year in donations and in 2006 alone, 8000 properties were gifted to the church in wills. The project is about how Vatican City might be able to give something the poor living in Rome. 

By Marc