Materials Matter Exhibition 2025

On 11 and 12 June 2025, the Col·legi d'Arquitectes de Catalunya (COAC) hosted the fourth edition of the Materials Matter Exhibition, our annual meeting point for architecture, interior design, design and industry. Organised by Matter Group and co-organised this year with Material Bank, the exhibition was part of the programme of Barcelona's Setmanes d'Arquitectura (Architecture Weeks).

Over two days, hundreds of professionals came together to discover, touch and discuss innovative, sustainable and healthy materials for contemporary architecture. In this summary we look back at the three spaces of the show, the exhibiting brands, the A Matter of Choices talks programme and the social moments that closed each day.

Materials Matter Exhibition 20251:32

Three spaces at the COAC headquarters

The experience was organised across three complementary spaces in the COAC headquarters on plaça Nova, the building by Xavier Busquets opened in 1962 with sgraffiti by Picasso, each with its own character and focus:

• The mezzanine: the Conscious Materiality exhibition, curated and designed by Matter, with circular, low-emission and healthy materials.
• The Sala Picasso: more than 30 exhibiting brands in an informal, agile table format, designed for direct contact with manufacturers.
• The second floor: the continuous A Matter of Choices talks programme, with architecture, interior design and product design studios.

Conscious Materiality on the mezzanine

Materials that care for the environment and for the people who inhabit spaces.

The Conscious Materiality exhibition, curated by Matter's consultancy department, invited reflection on the present and future of construction design. It focused on materials that care for both the environment and the users of spaces, with particular attention to those that are circular, low-emission and healthy: a selection intended for a contemporary architecture that improves its surroundings and people's quality of life.

For the installation we had the special collaboration of Birdmind, a company that makes boards from agro-industrial waste, in this case rice husk. Its Rice Tab board was used to build the exhibition's display totems, so the exhibition's own supports were also an example of circular materiality. This partnership reinforced the exhibition's commitment to promoting a more conscious and innovative materiality in contemporary projects.

Professional meeting in the Sala Picasso

More than 30 brands and a format designed for conversation.

The Sala Picasso hosted more than 30 exhibiting brands in an informal, agile setting, with one table per brand. Visitors could see and touch products such as recycled and natural stone, wood and lime finishes, natural fibres, oxidised metals, textiles, large-format porcelain, latest-generation melamines, recycled vinyl flooring, taps, switches and lighting, among others. The atmosphere was relaxed and collaborative, ideal for direct dialogue between manufacturers and specifiers, and the new connections between materials and projects took centre stage.

Exhibiting brands

Ardex, Bolibar, Cielo, Cumella, Decustik, Durat, Egger, Farrugia, Fede, Finsa (Material Bank), Florim (Material Bank), Formma, Gancedo, Hunter Douglas (Material Bank), Ideal Work, Inbani, La Pietra Compattata, Lamadrid, Leds C4, Lico, Maindrop, Materio, Neolith, Patina Studio, Regarsa, Ritmonio, Sanycces, Tarimatec, THG Paris (Material Bank), Vertisol (Material Bank), We Are IB and Zucchetti. The brands marked took part through Material Bank.

Partner brands: Kave Home and Anieme. Media partner: Diariodesign.

A Matter of Choices: the talks programme

On the second floor of the COAC, a continuous programme of talks ran under the title A Matter of Choices, with more than 20 architecture, interior design and product design studios, both established and emerging. The speakers shared their experience of using different materials in their most recent projects, and many of the talks were set up as a dialogue with one of the exhibiting brands, which contributed its technical perspective on applied materiality.

The second day opened with an introduction by Matter and Material Bank. This was the programme of talks published by the organisers:

Wednesday 11 June

Thursday 12 June

More than a fair: community and celebration

One of the highlights of this edition was the cocktail party held on the evening of 11 June on the COAC terrace. With views of Barcelona Cathedral and a menu designed by chef Martín Berasategui, the evening rounded off a day of discovery and connection between professionals and manufacturers.

Attendees could also enter a prize draw for a trip for two to the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale, organised with Material Bank. To enter, they had to visit the exhibition and order free samples for a project through Material Bank between 26 May and 30 June 2025.

An edition that leaves its mark

Materials Matter Exhibition 2025 reaffirmed its role as a platform for rethinking architecture through materials: a space to discover, debate, share and, above all, build community. At Matter we remain committed to fostering dialogue and innovation around the materials that will shape our spaces.

If you would like to see our Materioteca and talk about the materials for your next project, book your visit to Matter Barcelona or Matter Madrid.