Barcelona has a new tourist attraction bearing the hallmark of the UIC Barcelona School of Architecture. The architect Josep Miàs, a lecturer at the University, is the professional behind the new “Barcelona” lettering located at the viewpoint at the Panoramic Area in Tibidabo, the city’s iconic amusement park, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary.
Inaugurated in February 2026 by the mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, Josep Miàs once again leaves his mark on the city with this new point of tourist interest. “The ‘Barcelona’ letters are strategically positioned to highlight different areas of the city,” explains Miàs, who had previously collaborated with Tibidabo on Jardí Square and on the Cuca de Llum, the funicular railway that provides access to the park.
“Each letter in the word ‘Barcelona’ is different. The ‘O’ jumps, the ‘C’ is set against the sea, the ‘L’ is a bench, and the ‘B’ is a large drum. We wanted to express the city’s Mediterranean character through an installation that people can interact with and play with. Barcelona’s skyline changes depending on the place from which it is viewed,” he notes.
A new photocall in Barcelona
The Barcelona installation at Tibidabo Amusement Park comes at a time when large-scale lettering is on the rise in cities around the world. “When we decided to design the ‘L’ as a bench, we knew people would take photographs there, with the city in the background. We have managed to generate a kind of pilgrimage to Tibidabo to capture an image at this new key location,” he explains.
In an interview at UIC Barcelona, Josep Miàs shared that the letters, constructed in steel and fitted with their own lighting system, will soon be illuminated with coloured lights. “So far, we have seen them lit in white, but when Barça win, they will light up in blue and garnet,” the architect confirms.
Josep Miàs has been a lecturer on the Bachelor’s Degree Final Project course at UIC Barcelona School of Architecture since the 2024–2025 academic year and is the director of the studio MIAS Architects. He is currently leading projects such as the renovation of Fira de Barcelona, as well as others.
