Palau Robert, Barcelona

Motorbikes and architectural designs – temporary exhibitions dedicated to a wide variety of topics are frequently shown in the Palau Robert Barcelona. ERCO spotlights and tracks ensure that new lighting concepts are simply and quickly implemented.

The Palau Robert was originally the property of an influential aristocrat, politician and businessman – Robert Robert i Surís. The private neoclassic villa, designed by the architects Henry Grandpierre and Joan Martorell i Montells, was completed in 1903. The landscape designer Ramon Oliva laid the gardens, taking up again the theme of palms from the World Exhibition in 1888. Following a chequered history, the Palau Robert is now owned by the Catalonian government and with its exhibition area, concert hall and tourist information centre forms a fixed part of the cultural life of Barcelona.

In addition to its four exhibition spaces, the hall and gardens are also used for shows to be visited in parallel that are usually only held for short periods and in compact layouts. The spectrum of topics is highly diverse and the identity, society, business and Catalan culture are regularly included. "Catalunya Moto" documented the history of the motorbike in Catalonia for example and "RCR Arquitectes – Creativitat Compartida" presented designs of the architects Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem and Ramon Vilalta from the city of Olot. When photos of both exhibitions are seen next to each other the differing lighting concepts are noticed straight away. The motorcycles are displayed in rich contrast with bright accents against a dark background, whereas the architectural designs are generally shown very brightly thanks to backlit, translucent display walls and supplementary highlights.

Lighting for the Palau Robert exhibition spaces was recently refurbished, and because shows are frequently changed the system needs to be flexible in application. Tracks currently ensure that luminaires can be exchanged or replaced quickly and simply. The ERCO Logotec and Optec spotlights used feature Spherolit lenses which create various light distributions and the luminaires can be replaced without tools. To enable a variety of display options, ERCO offers six highly precise, in-house developed lenses ranging from narrow spot to flood and oval flood.

Announcement on our own behalf:
From 23 September to 9 October 2016 the exhibition "Matthew Penn – Illuminating Characters" in cooperation with ERCO can be seen in the Palau Robert. The British artist illuminates his paintings exclusively with ERCO lighting tools and light control is a central element of design in his art. For more information, see the report "Matthew Penn's Sense of Light"