An immersive experience for all visitors
ZERO is a new introductory gallery and immersive optical device that will locate visitors as they begin their experience in the Museum’s lobby.
A kaleidoscopic environment with 300º vision
ZERO welcomes all guests with a sensory experience that provides insight into the urban history of the Bilbao region, and offers a new approach to Frank O. Gehry’s building as well as to the Permanent Collection of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao.
ZERO uses a curved projection and geometry to wrap visitors in a mirrored kaleidoscopic environment, allowing for a 300º view that multiplies the gallery 14 times. This dynamic setting places the viewer at the center, extending beyond the physical limits of tangible space to create a truly immersive experience of architecture.
The history, cityscape, and industrial past of Bilbao and the region of Biscay are at the core of ZERO’s visual experience. A selection of archival imagery provides context to the history of the Museum’s site and surroundings, focusing on the deep connections between the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and the aesthetic identity of the territory.
An extraordinary sensory journey
ZERO also demonstrates the genesis and development of the Museum, weaving architectural textures and details together with some of the most iconic works in the Permanent Collection. The result is an awe-inspiring experience of works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Louise Bourgeois, Daniel Buren, Eduardo Chillida, Jenny Holzer, Anish Kapoor, Anselm Kiefer, Yves Klein, Jeff Koons, Fujiko Nakaya, Jorge Oteiza, Gerhard Richter, Mark Rothko, Richard Serra, Cy Twombly, and Andy Warhol presented at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao’s galleries and outdoor spaces.
An original audio composition brings ZERO beyond the visual level and into a unique sensorial journey. ZERO’s sound design takes its inspiration from local Basque culture, namely through the use of the “txalaparta”, a traditional percussion instrument whose ancestral resonance blends with references to electronic and world music.
ZERO is a commission of the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao created by Local Projects, an experience design studio based in New York City renowned for its approach to visitor engagement and its award-winning collaborations with cultural institutions across the globe.