GEORGINA CORTES
Barcelona (EFE).- The artistic space Ikono opened almost a month ago in Barcelona, in the Las Arenas shopping center, a new immersive experience after the success of its openings in Madrid and Rome with the aim of expanding more internationally.
With a 1,200 square meter premises, Ikono offers an immersive tour for all ages in different rooms to immerse yourself in emotions, boost creativity and enjoy a good experience.
The experience lasts approximately one hour with 10 immersive and interactive installations that can be enjoyed every day on the third floor of the Las Arenas shopping center.
The idea for the Ikono project arose from a family trip of the founders to Japan, where they were amazed by one of the country’s bamboo forests. Upon returning home, they were able to transport themselves to that moment and relive it with the photographs they had taken during the trip.
“They thought about how to bring together all these iconic sites in the same space and to have the feeling of traveling from one place to another without leaving the same establishment, it was from there that the idea of the Ikono experience began to materialize. ”, the person in charge of the room in Barcelona, Direy Alcaide, has assured EFE.
“A unique experience in Europe”
Ikono has been one of the first to bring the experience of immersive rooms to Europe. “The concept of the immersive experience had spread a bit in the United States and in Asia, but in Europe there was nothing of this type,” Alcaide stated.
In 2020 they opened their first space in Madrid and after the great reception it received, Ikono opened its borders and installed its second immersive experience in Rome at the end of last year.
“To establish an Ikono room, the city has to be cosmopolitan, a modern city and, above all, one that welcomes people from all over the world and with a young spirit”, Alcaide highlighted.
The opening of the premises in Barcelona came in March of this year, being the third Ikono space in all of Europe. “Expectations are more than exceeded, the reception that Ikono Barcelona is having is quite good,” Alcaide pointed out.
A new form of leisure
The founders of Ikono also realized that in travel, most offers in the leisure sector were always the same and that not all of these were for the whole family.
Direy alcaide assures that “the success is that it is a different plan, with a sector that had to be innovated, especially tourist leisure.”
The Ikono rooms are also a space where ‘postureo’ and ‘instragameables’ photographs take place, and it is something that is also beneficial in this new type of leisure. “Especially with the advent of social networks, Ikono allows you to combine traditional leisure with this type of new leisure that converges very well together”, highlighted the person in charge of the room.
A sensory journey
The Ikono experience begins with a large ball pool, the most outstanding room on the tour. “It is a scenario rooted in childhood that for a person of 40, 50 or 60 years old allows them to enjoy and bring out the child that they carry inside, have a good time and not think about what they can say about you”, Alcaide commented.
Next, the tour leads to CyberPunk street, with different rooms such as the camouflage room, the room with lanterns and mirrors, the Picasso-inspired room where you can draw pictures, and a room with a dark cave.
Then you come to Botticelli’s light labyrinth, a room that collaborates with the American artist Heather Bellino who designs the twenty abstract pieces inspired by the work of the Italian Renaissance.
The immersive experience ends with a large room of giant cubes that light up with the music, and the disco room full of arcade machines, which users can use to play.
Ikono intends to expand further and be able to bring immersive experiences to more cities in Europe.