Barcelona: The Host City
Barcelona is the vibrant Catalan capital, a city with a rich Mediterranean culture and history and dynamic industrial tradition.  Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain and has become a destination for leisure travelers, as well as for traditional business activity, with a historic city center and noteworthy cultural and architectural attractions.   Barcelona 2009 will showcase not only the cultural beauty of Barcelona, but the architectural beauty as well.

Casa Llotja de Mar
The former stock exchange, the Casa Llotja de Mar, is a jewel in Barcelona’s history and stands near the City’s waterfront.  It was built during the second half of the 14th century and is one of the most important ensembles of two-story, medieval gothic architecture in the Mediterranean.  The present Casa Llotja de Mar was built in the 18^th Century on top of the old medieval building.  The Neoclassic construction has a height of 22 meters and each of the façades is topped by a pediment distributed according to the importance of the street overlooked by the façade when it was built.

The Casa Llotja de Mar houses one of the most interesting collections of Neoclassic sculpture in Spain.  Its most outstanding work is the Dying Luctretia, by Damia Campeny. Historically, the Casa Llotja de Mar has been the seat of the most emblematic institutions of Catalan commerce, for instance, the Consulate of the Sea or the Royal Particular Board of Commerce of Barcelona.  Today, it is the corporate headquarters of the Official Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Shipping of Barcelona.

Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, Palau Nacional
In 1990 the Catalan Museums Law reunited the collections of the old Museu d'Art de Catalunya (Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque art collections) and the Museu d'Art Modern (19th-and 20th-century art collections) under one roof, and declared it a national museum, incorporating the Department of Drawings and Prints, the Gabinet Numismàtic de Catalunya (coinage and medals) and the Biblioteca d'Història de l'Art (General Library of Art History) into the new museum structure. Later in 1996, the Department of Photography was created and this artistic discipline was included in the museum project.

The Palau Nacional, the emblematic building of the 1929 International Exhibition, is the home of the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya. It is situated on the mountain of Montjuïc, a privileged site from where you can enjoy a magnificent and unique view of the city of Barcelona.

The Montjuïc, the mountain of museums, leisure and sport, is well on the way to becoming an area of culture and life. The institutions you will find spread around the Park, of renowned international prestige, make Montjuïc the museum centre par excellence in Barcelona, with a diverse, complete offer. As well as the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya, you can visit the Fundació Joan Miró, the Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya, the Museu Etnològic and CaixaForum, among others.