An immersive outdoor experience will illuminate Christmas in Sant Jaume Square

BarcelonaAn immersive outdoor experience. Under this apparent paradox, one of the few remaining mysteries about what Christmas will be like in Barcelona was unveiled this Wednesday. For the second year in a row, Plaça de Sant Jaume will replace the traditional art installation—reinterpreting the traditional nativity scene with varying degrees of success, but always generating controversy—with a light show. In this case, an impressive projection will illuminate the façades of the City Hall and the Palau de la Generalitat in gold every night between November 22nd and January 5th.

The installation, created by Xavi Bové Studio and called Symphony of StarsThe Plaça Sant Jaume will be illuminated like never before. Up to 240,000 lumens from energy-efficient laser projectors will offer a resolution of over 50 million pixels. All of this will project an uninterrupted spectacle onto the façades of the City Hall and the Palau de la Generalitat, featuring 25 stars that gradually light up in a timeline referencing the Advent calendar. These golden stars will coexist with a first layer consisting of a dynamic background that "evokes the cosmos" and will change color on specific dates—the nights of December 24, 25, and 31, and January 1 and 5—and with another layer that illuminates them with sound. Bové emphasized that this is not "a mapping" "Not conventional," but rather a "living image designed to embrace those who visit the square." The show will be silent.

The creators have also emphasized that the show's golden aesthetic is inspired by the brilliance of gold, with allusions to the paintings of Gustav Klimta and religious frames made with gold leaf. All of this can be seen from this Saturday, November 22nd, until January 5th, every afternoon starting at 6:30 p.m. The project had a budget of 250,000 euros, contributed equally by the Generalitat (Catalan Government) and the City Council.

For the second year in a row, Barcelona's Plaça Sant Jaume will host a light show. At a press conference, the Councilor for Culture, Xavier Marcé, defended this as the city government's commitment and stated their intention to continue it in the coming years. Marcé also explained that the giant star installed in Plaça Sant Jaume a year ago will not be installed in another part of the city. The reason, he said, is that reassembling it required two and a half months of treatment, which they were unable to complete in time.