The platforms of the Passeig de Gràcia station enter the tunnel of time

The period-themed project for the central sections of the platforms at Passeig de Gràcia metro station, originally called “Aragón,” revived the aesthetic of the first metro stations.

Through a recreation of heritage elements such as signage, graphic design, fonts, materials, posters, and advertising for commercial products and cultural institutions that existed in the 1920s and 1930s, vintage advertising once again graced the platforms. This includes brands such as Chocolates Amatller, Santa Eulalia tailoring, Gallina Blanca, Cacaolat, Letona (from Cacaolat Group), Norit, Orion, and Tintes Iberia (from AC Marca), as well as some of the oldest cultural institutions in Barcelona, like the Gran Teatre del Liceu and the Palau de la Música Catalana, all of which are sponsors of this initiative and the overall Metro Centenary celebration.

Regarding the other elements of the setting, internal work was done using the photographic archive of the TMB Foundation, which has over 42,000 digitized images, aiming to reproduce, with vinyls, the typography and graphic design of station name posters, as well as the appearance of the walls, with beveled white tiles, and the floor, featuring hexagonal-patterned tiles. Additionally, taking advantage of the volumetric elements of the platforms, the station master’s cabins, which were located on the platforms, and the benches, simulating wood, were recreated.

Period-appropriate lighting was also introduced, while maintaining current safety elements and essential service information. Moreover, advertising spaces were used to display black-and-white photographs of the first metro line stations, taken by one of the pioneers of Catalan photojournalism, Josep Brangulí.

The ambiance of the event was completed with period music and characters dressed in historical attire, replicating the figures from the institutional inauguration on December 30, 1924, as well as Barcelona’s 1920s society, from the working class to the upper bourgeoisie, along with the main metro professions, such as station masters, drivers, and ticketing staff.

The platforms at Passeig de Gràcia station will remain period-themed until the end of January 2025.