Juan Carlos I inaugurated the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in 1997 alongside Queen Sofía.
The royal inauguration marked the opening of Frank Gehry’s landmark museum on Bilbao’s waterfront. The building became the centerpiece of a major urban renewal project in the former industrial city.
Juan Carlos I was Spain’s king from 1975 until his abdication in 2014. Queen Sofía, his wife, participated in the ceremony, which gave the museum a prominent national opening.
The event is sometimes confused with the museum’s public opening date or with the announcement of the project. The Guggenheim Bilbao opened in 1997, but the foundation and the city had developed the project over several preceding years.