virreina

Opening today, photography exhibition ‘Barcelona. The Metropolis in the Age of Photography 1860-2004’ tells the story of the Catalan capital with 1,000 works. The collection of photographs, magazines, documentaries and films is provided by 58 lenders which are primarily in Catalonia but also to be found in Madrid, Pamplona, Salamanca, Paris, Lausanne, London and even New York. The history of the city of Barcelona is separated into six major moments, within which one can observe the metropolis change with the World Fair, the expansion of the city, the opening of new streets, the rhetoric of new artistic movements, social struggles, the Civil War and the subsequent photographical documentation of the transition to democracy. Ending in 2004, this chronological exhibition represents curator Jorge Ribalta’s many years of intensive work exploring the relation between photographs and a city. 

'On the Table. Ai Weiwei' opened this November at the Virreina Image Centre in Barcelona and will run until 1 February 2015. The exhibition shows the trajectory of the artist’s life through forty pieces, including photographs, videos and installations, some of which were created specially for the gallery in Barcelona. Through various routes, visitors can address the fundamental issues of the work of the controversial Chinese artist and political activist, including multidisciplinary themes, and those of non-conformity, dissent and the condition of media. The exhibition will take place in the Virreina Image Centre, an art centre on the famous Les Rambles walkway, and entry will be free of charge.

Barcelona’s ‘La Virreina’ centre opened an art exhibition about the important changes that happened in 1979 at local and global level. Some of the moments captured in the display are revolutions in Iran and Nicaragua, Margaret Thatcher being sworn into office, the first democratic elections in Spain and Sony’s walkman era.