Cultural olympiad

As required by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the cultural programme for the XXVth Olympiad was specifically planned. In this respect, the four years between the Seoul’’88 Olympic Games and the Barcelona’’92 Olympic Games were culturally themed.

The Cultural Olympiad formally began in 1988 with the “Portico” of the Olympiad, which included the famous performance by Montserrat Caballé and Freddy Mercury, among other acts.

The year 1989 was designated the Year of Sport, with the opening of a permanent exhibition on sport and the first Autumn Festival, which was repeated in 1990 and 1991. These festivals thematically united a whole series of theatre, music and dance performances that increased the city’’s usual offerings.

The year 1990 was designated the Year of the Arts, and the city’’s modernist cultural heritage was highlighted. Among other events, the city’s most unique modernist buildings were signposted by paving stones identifying them. Together they formed a route. As a result, these buildings were thematically linked in a graphic manner for the very first time.

The year 1991 was the Year of the Future, in which the city’’s new design trends were emphasised by the “Casa Barcelona” project, as well as a new Autumn Festival.

As a major cultural event, the Olympic Festival of the Arts was held in 1992. It combined exhibitions and performing arts shows, and was the culmination of the Cultural Olympiad.

Over the four years, and in order to leave a legacy of the evolution of the XXVth Olympiad, the “Crònica Cinematogràfica” (Film Report) project was carried out. It was an audiovisual product aimed at charting the evolution of the city throughout its Olympic experience.