November 4–9, 2026
Part of the project IMMENSIVA →
Presented by: ESPRONCEDA – Institute of Art & Culture
Venue: Carrer d’Espronceda 326, Nau 5, 08027 Barcelona
Official opening: Wednesday, 4 November 2026 · 18:30–21:30
Public project previews: 5–9 November 2026 · daily sessions at 16:00, 18:00 and 20:00 (90 minutes, 10 participants per session)
Admission: free, advance booking required · Book your session
As part of the seventh edition of IMMENSIVA FESTIVAL, ESPRONCEDA presents eight international XR art projects exploring memory, identity, cultural heritage and new ways of experiencing the world through immersive technologies.
As part of the seventh edition of IMMENSIVA FESTIVAL, ESPRONCEDA – Institute of Art & Culture presents IMMENSIVA EXPO 2026, the first public exhibition of IMMENSIVA 2026, Collective Cartographies, bringing together eight international XR art projects exploring the connections between cultural heritage, collective memory, identity, human relationships and the ways we perceive the world.
Opening on 4 November 2026 at 18:30, the exhibition presents artistic projects developed through IMMENSIVA’s international residency programme, following months of artistic research, specialised mentorship and collaborative production. Under the curatorial theme Collective Cartographies, the programme approaches cartography as more than the mapping of geographical territories. It explores how stories, memories, emotions, cultural identities and shared experiences shape our understanding of the places we inhabit and the worlds we imagine.
Through virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR), interactive installations, spatial computing and experimental digital environments, the participating artists propose new ways of discovering, interpreting and engaging with these connections. From an archaeological expedition into the memories of Barcelona’s residents to underwater cultural heritage, eighteenth-century scientific
exploration, immersive musical worlds and participatory rituals, IMMENSIVA EXPO 2026 transforms ESPRONCEDA into a space for artistic discovery, experimentation and collective imagination. Following the official opening, audiences will have the opportunity to experience the eight projects through free, pre-booked 90-minute project preview sessions from 5 to 9 November, with three daily sessions at 16:00, 18:00 and 20:00.
IMMENSIVA EXPO is the public presentation of an international artistic residency and production process developed throughout 2026. Combining online collaboration, specialised mentorship, masterclasses and on-site artistic development, the programme supports interdisciplinary teams working at the intersection of contemporary art, immersive technologies and cultural research. Throughout the residency, participating artists have explored how emerging technologies can expand the possibilities of storytelling, cultural interpretation and audience participation. The programme encourages experimentation with virtual and mixed reality, spatial computing, interactive environments and collaborative XR experiences, with platforms such as STYLY contributing to the wider technological framework.
Beyond the development of individual artworks, IMMENSIVA fosters knowledge exchange, professional development and international collaboration between artists, researchers, cultural organisations and technology specialists.
The November exhibition presents 8 projects from a wider selection of 13 international artistic proposals. Five additional projects will undertake an in-person artistic residency at ESPRONCEDA in February 2027, culminating in a second public exhibition.Both presentations form part of IMMENSIVA 2026, Collective Cartographies, extending the programme’s artistic reach and creating further opportunities for international exchange and public engagement.
Following the official opening on 4 November, ESPRONCEDA invites audiences to discover the eight international XR art projects through a series of public project previews from 5 to 9 November 2026. Designed as an immersive journey through all eight installations, each 90-minute session offers visitors the opportunity to experience the projects developed through IMMENSIVA’s international artistic residency programme. With one participant per headset, the previews offer an opportunity to engage directly with the immersive artworks and discover the diverse artistic perspectives presented under this year’s curatorial theme, Collective Cartographies.From cultural heritage and collective memory to interactive storytelling, music, ecological reflection and alternative realities, the programme demonstrates the creative potential of immersive technologies as a medium for contemporary artistic expression. To ensure an engaging visitor experience, each session is limited to 10 participants.
Official exhibition opening: Wednesday, 4 November 2026 · 18:30
Public project previews: 5–9 November 2026
Daily Sessions: 16:00 · 18:00 · 20:00
Duration: 90 minutes per session
Capacity: 10 participants per session
The exhibition brings together 8 international projects developed through the IMMENSIVA residency programme, exploring different dimensions of collective experience, from historical and cultural heritage to speculative realities and new relationships between physical and digital environments.
Relats de la Terra explores the cultural landscape of Valencia through its folkloric and mythological heritage, revealing how traditional legends reflect the historical, social and spiritual contexts in which they emerged. Combining expertise in music, interactive systems and XR design, Alayna Hughes and Lien Tran investigate the relationship between folklore, collective identity and the communities and territories that have shaped these narratives over time. Rather than presenting myths as isolated stories, the project examines how they preserve shared memories, beliefs and cultural traditions, offering insights into the ways communities understand and interpret their surroundings. Through immersive and interactive artistic experimentation, Relats de la Terra invites audiences to rediscover Valencia’s cultural heritage, connecting historical research with contemporary technologies to create new ways of experiencing, interpreting and transmitting the stories embedded in a particular place.
Imaginary Lines is a mixed-reality adventure in which participants become active members of the French Geodesic Mission in the Royal Audiencia of Quito, working alongside French and Spanish scientists and local collaborators who set out to determine the shape of the Earth at the Middle of the World. Set between 1736 and 1743, the experience invites participants to use eighteenth-century scientific instruments reimagined as interactive tools to measure the Earth, trace triangles between mountains and gaze at the stars. As the expedition crosses challenging terrain, it encounters extreme weather, technical difficulties and unexpected events that threaten its progress. Moving between fully immersive virtual environments and the physical world enhanced by 3D elements, participants must explore, experiment and collaborate to overcome these challenges. Imaginary Lines brings science and heritage to life through a multiplayer journey that combines the precision of scientific observation with the excitement, curiosity and wonder of discovery.
Feu Bleu brings together creative producer and immersive experience designer Raphaëlle Brissette and screenwriter, journalist and interdisciplinary researcher Victoria Emanuelle. Their collaborative practice connects immersive technologies with historical research, archives, ethnography and socially engaged storytelling. With particular attention to women’s experiences and perspectives that have often remained outside dominant historical narratives, their approach investigates how interactive and location-based media can offer new forms of cultural interpretation and audience engagement. Their participation contributes a research-driven perspective to the festival’s exploration of memory, representation and collective storytelling.
Totems of Hope is a participatory spatial neuroaesthetic experience exploring generosity, empathy and human connection through immersive art.Created by Simeone Scaramozzino, with development by Martel Barthélemy, the project combines XR, neurotechnology, EEG-informed biofeedback, tactile interaction and neuroadaptive sound.Participants are invited into a multisensory journey structured around symbolic rituals of reflection, exchange and collective care. Physical scenography and digital environments work together to create encounters in which technology becomes a means of exploring attention, emotional awareness and interpersonal relationships.Rather than focusing on technological spectacle, Totems of Hope asks how immersive experiences might encourage meaningful connections between individuals and strengthen a sense of shared presence.
Lord Lyrical is an immersive, music-driven VR art experience that transforms sound and frequency into the foundations of a shared virtual world. Conceived for ten simultaneous participants, the experience transports audiences into a fantastical environment where each person is assigned a distinct musical frequency, influencing their perspective and visual experience. Alongside the group appears Lord Lyrical, an additional presence guiding a choreographed sequence in which music, movement and visual effects unfold in synchronisation. Blending hip-hop, immersive storytelling and collective virtual presence, the project explores the relationship between musical composition, digital worldbuilding and shared perception
Ancient Future Underwater brings together underwater cultural heritage, digital preservation and immersive artistic creation. Developed by reality capture specialist Yuma Ito and internationally recognised XR artist Aimi Sekiguchi, the project combines photogrammetry, 3D Gaussian Splatting and virtual painting inspired by Japan’s ancient Jōmon pottery. Drawing on connections between underwater archaeological heritage in Spain and Japanese cultural traditions, the artists investigate how immersive technologies can transform historical objects and environments into shared spaces for exploration and creativity.The experience invites audiences to move beyond conventional representations of archaeology, discovering new emotional and artistic relationships with cultural memory and the natural world.
Modern Fossils is a multi-user VR installation that invites audiences to participate in an archaeological expedition set on a post-human Earth. Instead of recovering ancient monuments, participants discover everyday objects and places selected by people living in Barcelona today. Each recovered artefact reveals a recorded personal testimony, offering insight into the memories, emotions and meanings associated with ordinary possessions and familiar locations. As visitors collectively uncover these fragments, the experience creates an alternative portrait of Barcelona through the intimate stories of its inhabitants. Combining documentary storytelling, interactive exploration and speculative archaeology, the project investigates how collective memory might be preserved and interpreted by future generations.
O is an immersive extended reality stage experience in which performers and spectators share a hybrid performance space where physical reality, mixed reality and virtual worlds coexist in real time.Created by Barcelona-based artist Ferran Gordillo, the experience explores how we construct our perception of reality and what happens when the technologies we use to observe the world begin to transform it. Through science, philosophy, imagination and spirituality, the investigation of a meteorite of unknown origin gradually becomes an exploration of the observer’s own consciousness. At a time when technology can intervene in, overlay and transform what we perceive as real, O questions which aspects of our experience belong to the external world and which are shaped by the person observing it. Through a device that alters their perception, spectators become part of an unstable, constantly transforming reality.O invites audiences on an immersive journey into a space where the boundaries between reality, consciousness and imagination become increasingly indistinguishable.
About IMMENSIVA – Collective Cartographies. IMMENSIVA is ESPRONCEDA – Institute of Art & Culture’s flagship programme dedicated to immersive art and emerging technologies. Through artistic residencies, exhibitions and international collaborations, it supports experimentation with XR, AI and interactive media. Celebrating its seventh edition, IMMENSIVA 2026 – Collective Cartographies brings together international artists exploring cultural heritage, collective memory and shared immersive experiences, fostering artistic innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration and cultural impact. More information: www.immensiva.com
About ESPRONCEDA, Institute of Art and Culture. Founded in Barcelona in 2013, ESPRONCEDA – Institute of Art & Culture is an independent international centre dedicated to contemporary art, artistic research and digital innovation. Through its flagship programmes IMMENSIVA and NUBIA LAB, it fosters interdisciplinary collaboration and supports artists working with XR, AI and emerging technologies. Its projects have been showcased at international platforms including Ars Electronica, Venice VR and NewImages Festival. More information: www.espronceda.net
Maria Rubies
ESPRONCEDA – Institute of Art & Culture
maria.rubies@espronceda.net
+34 607 639 552
www.espronceda.net
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