Barcelona’s Load Gallery Shines at Inaugural Loop Lab Busan

Catalan creativity takes center stage in South Korea’s new digital art fair.

Barcelona’s digital art scene found a new international platform last week as Load Gallery joined the inaugural Loop Lab Busan, a new media art fair held from April 24th to 26th, 2025 in South Korea. As the youngest of seven Catalan galleries featured in the fair’s “Focus Catalonia” section, Load Gallery showcased the work of digital artist Ezequiel Pini, known as Six N. Five.​

Pini’s two-minute video piece, Species, captivated attendees with its meticulously rendered digital landscapes exploring imagined ecologies and speculative futures. The work, which premiered at Load Gallery’s opening in 2024, exemplifies Pini’s refined visual language and unique position at the intersection of digital art, design, and technology.​

Loop Lab Busan, inspired by its Barcelona counterpart, featured over 40 international and local galleries, transforming hotel rooms into intimate exhibition spaces. The fair aimed to foster a collaborative, multidimensional artistic ecosystem, blending popular culture with contemporary art. ​

Focus Catalonia

The “Focus Catalonia” section highlighted the region’s rich tradition in video and digital art, a nod to Barcelona’s influential Loop Festival. Since its inception in 2003, Loop Barcelona has been a leading platform for the study and promotion of the moving image, annually transforming the city into a hub for video art enthusiasts.

“I chose to open the gallery in Barcelona rather than Paris because the city has an innovative spirit. It felt more open to media art and already had key trailblazers, such as Sónar+D and, of course, Loop. It’s essential that a fair with Loop’s reputation embraces digital art, and I hope the upcoming Barcelona edition will include digital art along with video art.” says Alex Simorrè, founder of Load.

Loop Lab Busan’s debut not only provided a stage for Catalan galleries like Load but also signified a broader cultural exchange between Barcelona and Busan. The event underscored the global resonance of Catalonia’s digital art scene and its capacity to inspire and engage audiences worldwide.​

For those interested in exploring the evolving landscape of digital art, Load Gallery’s successful showing at Loop Lab Busan offers a glimpse into the creative potential emerging from Barcelona.