The façades of the Palau de la Generalitat and the City Hall become the canvas for Simfonia d’estels, an intervention projected by Xavi Bobé Estudio.

The City Council and the Generalitat once again join forces to create a shared light intervention in Plaça de Sant Jaume, turning the square—home to the main institutions of the city and of Catalonia—into one of the central hubs of Barcelona’s Christmas season. Without sound or words, the piece merges architecture, sky, and tradition in a subtle, sensitive choreographic play of light. From 22 November to 5 January, come and see how the iconography of the season takes on contemporary form.

As timeless, cross-cultural symbols, stars and gold become the departure point for a luminous “second skin” of photons that stretches across the façades of the square, inviting slow contemplation and quiet delight. Look closely: this is no conventional mapping, but something else entirely—an embrace made of light, addressed to everyone who visits the square.

The work comes from Xavi Bobé Estudio (Xavi Bové and Xavi Maixenchs), who remind us that Christmas has long been a moment when many cultures celebrate light. Hence this greeting to the light that will soon lengthen the days, entering Plaça de Sant Jaume, climbing the surfaces of its emblematic buildings, allowing us to rediscover their architecture while making them “converse” silently with the celestial dome above. A luminous cadence and quiet rhythms echo within each passer-by as “a subtle and emotional symphony,” in the creators’ words.

Gold, of course, plays a central role—whether evoking a Klimt painting or a medieval altarpiece. This year the square will shimmer, as never before: more lumens (the unit of luminous flux) and higher resolution projections than have ever been used here. Experience it from Monday to Thursday, 6:30 pm to 10 pm, or on Fridays, Saturdays, holiday eves and holidays, from 6:30 pm to 11 pm.

Visit the square on the key festive days—Christmas, New Year’s Eve, and Epiphany (6:30 to 10 pm)—and you’ll see the projections undergo chromatic transformations. Altogether, it promises to be an open-air immersive experience, a celebration for everyone.

The proposal reaffirms Barcelona’s commitment to transforming its urban landscapes into a vast outdoor laboratory for digital arts, beginning at the very heart of the city.

Before leaving the square, glance at the fifteen-meter-tall Christmas tree installed by Mercabarna. Floral designer Michaela Shmidt has adorned it by invoking tradition, but with a touch of modernity and a clearly contemporary character.

If you don’t want to miss this light intervention in Plaça de Sant Jaume—now one of the must-see features of Barcelona’s festive season—stop by for a stroll, but first check the visiting information on the Christmas website.