Félix de la Concha Exhibition at La Térmica Draws Nine Thousand Visitors
The contemporary culture centre La Térmica has concluded its landmark exhibition, Félix de la Concha. Choreographies of Attention, wrapping up a successful four-month run that attracted nearly 9,000 visitors. The showcase established a strong connection between contemporary art, industrial memory, and the local community, drawing diverse audiences from across the region and beyond.
In addition to the main gallery attendance, the exhibition's extensive cultural programming drew active participation, with approximately 1,000 people attending parallel events and 600 visitors contributing to an innovative audience research study.
Inside the Exhibition: Art, Memory, and Industrial Heritage
Held in the distinctive Condensers Hall (Sala Condensadores), the exhibition was curated by Nieves Acedo and custom-designed for the space in collaboration with studioHerreros. The display brought together more than 800 individual artworks organized into 16 distinct series, representing over three decades of creative output by the León-born painter Félix de la Concha during his career in Spain, Italy, and the United States.
The retrospective encouraged visitors to reflect on the nature of human attention and observation. Among the highly anticipated highlights were series previously unseen in Spain, such as Fallingwater in Perspective, which captures the interior of the iconic Frank Lloyd Wright residence.
Another central pillar of the exhibition was Portraits from Pozo Julia, a project developed by the artist between 2022 and 2024. This series featured portraits of local residents from Fabero linked to the collective memory of coal mining, bridging the gap between modern artistic expression and the preservation of local history.
Interactive Programs and Audience Insights
The four-month run was accompanied by 13 community-focused activities, including guided dialogue tours, workshops, and performance art, which achieved an impressive average occupancy rate of over 80 percent. Several key events reached full capacity, including the presentation of the audiovisual piece Conversations from Pozo Julia, the Spectators Workshop, and a live performance-concert by Fantasma Sur.
To better understand how visitors interact with contemporary art, the host institution partnered with the University of Navarra's Institute for Culture and Society (ICS). Through their "Vínculos, Creatividad y Cultura" group, a study involving 600 voluntary participants analyzed visitor dwell times, motivations, and emotional connections to the curatorial design.
The study revealed high levels of engagement, with 20 percent of those surveyed returning for a second visit and 30 percent expressing a strong desire to participate in future initiatives at the cultural complex.
What Lies Ahead at the Culture Centre
With the close of this retrospective, the venue is preparing its galleries for its next major artistic project, which will focus on the work of the renowned sculptor Eduardo Chillida.
As La Térmica continues to expand its calendar of contemporary art, film, and community workshops, culture lovers can easily track upcoming events. To discover more about local landmarks and find your next gallery visit, explore the Musemap (musemap.art) interactive regional map or browse the latest cultural listings in our exhibitions directory.
