The International Museum Construction Congress (IMCC), an event that brings together museum and architecture professionals to explore sustainability, planning, project management, construction, renovation and expansion of museums, has a limited number of tickets remaining for the upcoming IMCC InFocus: Basque Country.
The event in Bilbao and San Sebastián will take place from 10 to 12 May, and will include sessions and exclusive visits that celebrate creativity, culture, and connection in Spain’s Basque Country.
To find out more and register, please click here.
Behind-the-scenes visits, keynotes & networking
The three-day programme offers a behind-the-scenes look at one of Europe’s most inspiring regions. The focused structure includes fewer sessions to emphasise visits.
Day one includes a welcome from Javier Martinez, operations director at Proasur and Congress chairperson, and a keynote presentation by Mikel Onandia Garate, art historian and exhibition curator, and professor at the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of the Basque Country.
These will be followed by a behind-the-scenes tour of Bilbao Fine Arts Museum and an evening reception.
On day two, attendees will enjoy a tour of the Basque Museum, which is currently under construction, and a visit to Itsasmuseum Bilbao (Museo MarÃtimo de Bilbao). Here, the group will be welcomed by the museum director, Jon Ruigomez, before exploring the museum with both a guided tour and time for self-directed viewing.
In the afternoon, the event will move to the Guggenheim Bilbao, where they will hear from the deputy director for maintenance, Rogelio DÃez.
This will be followed by a session with Juan Ignacio Vidarte, director and chief officer for global strategies (and former director of the Guggenheim Bilbao) and Andrew Klemmer, president and founder of the Paratus Group.
The delegation will then remain at the museum for a behind-the-scenes tour and networking reception.
Day three will include a visit to Chillida Leku in San Sebastián, with a welcome and overview from Mikel Chillida, development director and grandson of Eduardo Chillida, and museum director Mireia Massagué.
After both guided and self-directed tours of the museum, the group will travel on to Gastronomy Open Ecosystem (GOe) Basque Culinary Center.
Here, they will enjoy lunch and a welcome and overview from Asier Alea, director of global development, GOe-Gastronomy Open Ecosystem, and Mireia Sala Font, associate at BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group.
The event will be rounded out with a session titled Albaola: The Recovery of Maritime Heritage with Xabier Agote Aizpurua, founder of Albaola, and a behind-the-scenes tour of GOe.
Other upcoming IMCC events include a congress in Munich from 25 to 27 October.
Last month, IMCC published its post-congress report following IMCC 2025 in Copenhagen.
