🎭 At The Sun Places we propose a different plan to celebrate the arrival of spring. PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026 turns Seville into the epicentre of performance and critical thinking for two intense days.
And to enjoy this cultural experience in total comfort, nothing beats staying with us in our Luxury Apartments in Seville, from where you can easily access the Royal Artillery Factory and the rest of the city's attractions.
PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts is an initiative promoted by the Andalusian Agency of Cultural Institutions through the Andalusian Institute of Plastic and Visual Arts, in collaboration with the Institute of Culture and Arts of Seville (ICAS) and the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Seville.
The encounter was born with the objective of conveying that "contemporary Andalusian art is alive, very alive, and wants to be seen", making Andalusian artists visible internationally and creating a space for exchange between local, national and global creators.
The name "Patio" is not accidental: in Andalusian tradition, the patio symbolises a space for coexistence and community, an intermediate territory between the private and the public that becomes a stage for life and encounter.
To learn more about the city's cultural offering, we invite you to read our guides on The Alcázar of Seville and The Cathedral of Seville.
📜 What is PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026? History of the event
The first edition of PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts was held in December 2024 at the Museum of Malaga and the Roman Theatre, two emblematic heritage spaces in the city's historic centre.
Under the motto "Urgency and creation", that first event featured six performances by Andalusian artists such as Delia Boyano, Isabel León and Verónica Ruth Frías, together with international creators such as Norwegian Roi Vaara and Chinese artist Xie Rong. Artistic curation was carried out by Isa Sanz.
Following the success of its first edition, PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026 returns with a proposal that delves into the relationship between body, space and power.
On this occasion, the encounter moves to Seville and chooses a venue of extraordinary symbolic power: the Royal Artillery Factory, a historic building loaded with industrial and military memory that is now reactivated from contemporary culture.
The motto chosen for this edition, “Space as a political body”, invites reflection on how architecture conditions behaviour and articulates power relations, and how performance allows us to activate, rewrite or tense those structures.
🏛️ The Royal Artillery Factory: The historic setting of PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026
To understand the magnitude of PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026, you first need to know the space that hosts it. The Royal Artillery Factory of Seville, located in the San Bernardo neighbourhood, is one of the most important industrial buildings in Spain.
Its origins date back to 1565, when the Morel family established a small bronze foundry workshop in the area. In 1634, the facility became state property, beginning a period of great productivity thanks to trade with the Indies and army orders.
The current building began to be built in the first third of the 18th century, receiving a strong boost during the reign of Charles III, who in 1782 ordered its expansion.
In the 18th century, the Royal Artillery Factory was the largest in Spain. Thousands of cannons were cast in its workshops, making it one of the country's main arms production centres. The factory ceased its activity in 1991.
In 2018, the European Union financed the rehabilitation of the space with 20 million euros for its use as a cultural centre, and the first exhibition was inaugurated in 2024.
Today, the Royal Artillery Factory is a multidisciplinary space that hosts exhibitions, concerts and, of course, PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026.
Its industrial architecture, with the Foundry Hall, the Chimneys Room and the Scenic Space, offers an unparalleled setting for the live arts, establishing a dialogue between the memory of the place and contemporary creation.
🗓️Dates and programme of PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026
PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026 will be held over two intense days, on 20 and 21 March 2026, at the Royal Artillery Factory of Seville (Avenida de Eduardo Dato, 58). Admission to all activities is free until full capacity is reached.
🎭 Friday 20 March 2026: Opening lecture and first performances
- 17:00–18:15 | Scenic Space: Lecture by critic and philosopher Fernando Castro Flórez entitled “What a body can do. Impotence and retro-performative precariousness”, focused on the body as a space of political tension in contemporary art.
- 18:30–19:15 | Classroom 1 (Chimneys Room): Performance “Vital alchemy, where steel is wax and flame dances love” by iLA (Isidro López-Aparicio). Created for the genius loci of the Factory, it transforms the war symbol of the bomb — from steel to wax — into a collective ritual of affective resistance where the public participates by contributing words before the flame.
- 19:30–20:00 | Scenic Space: Video-conference-performance “EFTAs, Kintsugi, Mayas and false modesty” by Tania Bruguera, who will perform live from New York.
🎭 Saturday 21 March 2026: Performances and closing lecture
- 12:00–12:30 | Classroom 1 (Chimneys Room): Performance “The conqueror” by Regina José Galindo. From the phrase “Give me a mirror and I will give you life”, Galindo confronts the legacy of colonisation and the associated historical violences, activating a space of memory that resonates in the present.
- 17:30–19:00 | Scenic Space: Lecture “Sfumato between presentation and representation” by ORLAN, a world-renowned body art artist, in which she analyses the body as a political, technological and symbolic territory.
- 19:30–21:00 | Foundry Hall: Closing performance “Le slow de l’artiste” by ORLAN. In a space historically linked to discipline and surveillance, ORLAN reclaims slow dance as a political act of affective reparation, transforming the Factory with a disco ball into an unexpected place of intimacy.
These activities are complemented by workshop-laboratories taught by professors from the Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Seville (Cristina Muñoz del Águila, Jesús Algovi and Paco Lara-Barranco) during the mornings of Friday and Saturday, aimed at university students.
If you are passionate about immersive cultural experiences, do not miss our guide on Las Setas de Sevilla and other emblematic corners.
🍽️ Where to eat near the Royal Artillery Factory during PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026?
Taking advantage of your visit to PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026 to discover the gastronomic offering of the San Bernardo neighbourhood and its surroundings is an excellent plan.
Restaurante Artillería, located at Avenida Eduardo Dato, 23, just a few steps from the factory, is a Slow Bar & Restaurant with its own Neapolitan oven that prepares artisanal pizzas, risottos and tuna tataki, with a rating of 8.9/10 on TheFork.
The average price per person ranges between 15 and 25 euros. Its usual opening hours are from 13:00 to 16:00 and from 20:00 to 23:00 (check holiday hours).
A few minutes away, at Calle Julio César, 14, is Alimentari, an Italian restaurant with a rating of 4.8 out of 5 on Tripadvisor (more than 1,700 reviews), famous for its artisanal pizzas, fresh pasta and a careful selection of Italian wines.
If you prefer to travel to the historic centre, Seville's gastronomic offering is unrivalled.
Seville has a wide range of haute cuisine, with restaurants awarded Michelin Stars 2026 such as Ochando, Abantal and Restaurant Cañabota, and with Repsol Suns, such as Restaurante Kinu, Sobretablas and Balbuena y Huertas.
For those looking for a more authentic experience, the city has century-old taverns such as El Rinconcillo and emblematic wineries such as Casa Morales and Bodeguita Romero, which are institutions in Sevillian tapas culture.
🏙️ Other plans in Seville during PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026
March is an especially vibrant month in Seville. In addition to attending PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026, you can take advantage of your stay to enjoy other cultural events and traditions that are concentrated at this time of year.
The Seville Early Music Festival (FeMÀS) celebrates its 43rd edition in 2026, bringing together prominent international soloists and ensembles specialising in historically informed performance.
The Royal Alcázar offers theatrical and night-time visits focused on the history of the imperial wedding of Charles V, commemorating the 5th Centenary of this historic event.
In addition, the city is preparing for Holy Week (which in 2026 will be celebrated at the end of March, just after the encounter), with exhibitions of new features and restorations at the Círculo Mercantil e Hispano Americano.
And, of course, spring invites you to stroll through María Luisa Park, visit Plaza de España and get lost in the neighbourhoods of Santa Cruz and Triana. If you want to continue exploring Seville's heritage, we recommend reading about The Torre del Oro and its fascinating history.
🎭 What does PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026 represent for local culture?
PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026 is the maximum expression of Seville's cultural effervescence.
For the city, this event represents a showcase of modernity and a magnet for lovers of contemporary art, reinforcing Seville's role as a space open to the most avant-garde artistic practices and critical thinking.
For The Sun Places, this commitment to cultural avant-garde fits perfectly with our philosophy of offering accommodation experiences that connect with the most authentic and vibrant aspects of the city.
That is why our Luxury Apartments in Seville are the perfect complement for your cultural getaway.
✨ Perfect plan with The Sun Places to enjoy PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026
Friday 20 March:
- Afternoon: attend the opening lecture by Fernando Castro Flórez and the performances by iLA and Tania Bruguera at the Royal Artillery Factory (free admission).
- Night: dinner at Restaurante Artillería, just a few metres from the venue.
Saturday 21 March:
- Morning: visit to the Royal Alcázar and the Cathedral, or a stroll through María Luisa Park.
- Midday: performance by Regina José Galindo in the Chimneys Room.
- Lunch: tapas in the historic centre, visiting bars such as El Rinconcillo or Casa Morales.
- Afternoon: lecture and closing performance by ORLAN in the Foundry Hall.
- Night: celebratory dinner at a Michelin-starred restaurant or at the Alameda de Hércules.
Sunday 22 March:
- Breakfast at La Campana bakery.
- Before you leave, buy local products at Plaza del Cabildo or on Sierpes street.
Ready to be surprised by Seville's cultural avant-garde?
📞 Contact The Sun Places and let us organise your perfect getaway to enjoy PATIO. Encounter of Live Arts 2026 and all the cultural potential of the Sevillian capital.
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