Spanning more than 4,000 m² in the turbine hall of the former thermal power station, the exhibition offered thousands of citizens an exceptional look inside this iconic landmark before its upcoming transformation into a new hub for innovation and activity in the Barcelona metropolitan area. Through models, prototypes, audiovisual works, and full-scale installations, the display addressed critical contemporary challenges including the climate emergency, access to housing, material circularity, urban transformation, and city resilience.
At the core of the showcase were the 12 original installations from the Research by Design programme, which explored architecture’s capacity to intervene in processes of planetary transformation. These works were presented alongside the results of the International Emerging Workshop, held from 19 to 27 June, which brought together 180 young architects and students from around the world to experiment and produce innovative design solutions.
In dialogue with these projects, the exhibition featured over 200 built and theoretical contributions from Congress speakers, offering a comprehensive panorama of contemporary architectural practice across the six Becoming thematic tracks. Additionally, it showcased selected entries from the UNESCO–UIA International Student Competition Catalysts of Resilience and the Young Architects competition Architecture in the Aftermath of Disasters.
With this closing, the exhibition puts the final seal on the public programme of the UIA World Congress of Architects 2026 Barcelona, which gathered more than 10,000 professionals, students, and institutions from 130 countries and recorded over 30,000 visits to its main venues. By reaching a final total of over 50,000 attendees across all activities, the event reconfirms its historic impact and consolidates Barcelona as an international epicentre of contemporary architectural debate.
The exhibition Becoming. Architectures for a Planet in Transition has closed its doors after welcoming more than 20,000 visitors across 11 days at the Three Chimneys of Sant Adrià de Besòs, elevating total attendance across all UIA2026BCN activities to over 50,000. Free and open to the public as part of the Barcelona 2026 UNESCO–UIA World Capital of Architecture programme, the exhibition brought the Congress’s key contents to a wider audience while opening an iconic space to thousands of people before its upcoming transformation into a new hub of activity for the Barcelona metropolitan area.