From January 2026, visitors to Antoni Gaudí’s Casa Batlló in Barcelona will gain access to the building’s second floor for the very-first time. The space will open as a contemporary art gallery, and will expand on Casa Batlló Contemporary, a programme designed to reinterpret Gaudí’s legacy through artist commissions and new technology.
The floor, once used by Gaudí as a studio, later served as residential apartments, offices, and a maintenance workshop, gradually erasing much of the original architecture. It will now host two exhibitions per year, accessible either with general entry or with a standalone ticket.
“We wanted to bring back its atelier character,” says Gary Gautier, the general director of Casa Batlló, which was designated a Unesco World Heritage site in 2005. “We have restored everything that was original, such as the marquetry, while giving the rest a sober, elegant character.”
Barcelona-based studio Mesura oversaw the redesign, installing a curved metal ceiling printed with concentric ripples that echo Gaudí’s distinctive undulating forms. Carlos Dimas, a partner at the studio, says: “Intervening in a Gaudí building is both a dream and an enormous responsibility. Our goal was to create an echo of his work, a whisper that adds to his universe without altering it.”
The inaugural exhibition, opening 31 January 2026, will feature new works by UVA, a London-based collective founded and led by the British artist Matt Clark. As part of the programme, UVA will also create a Mapping, the annual projection of monumental digital artworks on to Casa Batlló’s modernist façade.
Since its launch in 2019, the sound and light event has attracted large crowds and become a popular fixture in the city’s cultural agenda. Previous editions featured Refik Anadol, Sofia Crespo, and Quayola, whose 2024 projection Arborescent drew 110,000 spectators.
Maria Bernat, the director of Casa Batlló Contemporary, says: “Casa Batlló Contemporary aims to foster a dialogue between the past and future, situating Antoni Gaudí’s legacy within a contemporary framework. Through art and architecture, it explores his radical vision with present-day thinking, remaining faithful to his spirit of innovation and disruption while engaging with Barcelona’s dynamic artistic landscape.”
The launch coincides with the centenary of Gaudí’s death and follows the completion of a six-year-long, €30m restoration and hi-tech revamp, which added 2,000 sq. m for immersive exhibitions. It also follows the restoration of the building’s façade, which was returned to its original design last June.
Renovation work now will continue on the building's rooftop chimneys and on its third floor, which was inhabited by tenants until 2019. This space is scheduled to open later in 2026.
