Luigi Micheletti Award
The Museu Agbar de les Aigües is housed in the Modernista buildings of the Cornellà Plant that Aigües de Barcelona opened in 1909 to extract water from the aquifer of the low valley of the river Llobregat in order to supply the city of Barcelona. Today, the Cornellà Plant continues to provide the same service as it did a century ago, and the original steamdriven installation coexists alongside the modern impulse pumps.
Its location in the historic Cornellà Plant of Aigües de Barcelona – a first-rate industrial heritage site of the water industry – and exhibitions and educational activities make the Museu Agbar de les Aigües a prime venue for discovering, exploring and experiencing the importance of this familiar yet extraordinary substance.
The original Modernista [Catalan Art Nouveau] buildings were designed by the architect Josep Amargós i Samaranch. At that time, Aigües de Barcelona obtained a permit to extract underground water in the town of Cornellà de Llobregat. To do that, a large, solid-brick, iron-beamed building comprising three interconnected units was built. The steamdriven machinery housed inside the building worked the pumps of a single well, the Fives Lille well. Today, Amargós’s building houses the museum’s Permanent Exhibition, which offers a multidisciplinary take on water (technological, scientific, historical and environmental) and combines industrial heritage with audiovisual and interactive elements. The Permanent Exhibition describes the history of supplying water to the city of Barcelona and its metropolitan area through a series of objects and documents that dialogue with interactive modules exemplifying devices designed throughout history to obtain water. In addition, it allows visitors to find out about the organoleptic, physical and chemical properties of water, and about other waterrelated issues such as hygiene and health.
The Museu Agbar de les Aigües is, above all, a living space designed to draw attention to the different manifestations and approaches to water through a range of exhibitions and activities for people of all ages. Since opening, the quality of the educational programmes has gained a very loyal following among schoolchildren, families and senior citizens, and the sociocultural programme includes heritage animation activities (animated visits, workshops and concerts) and water awareness events (film cycles, music, performances and scientific shows), all of which have strong ties to the territory.
The impact of the Luigi Micheletti Award
It has been an honour to accept the Micheletti Award and it is a highly valuable distinguishing factor for the Museum. At one and the same time, it serves as an acknowledgement for our project and for the progress that encourages us to keep moving forward. It gives recognition to all those people who have protected the patrimony of which we are now custodians and who have held the creation of our Museum in their hearts over the course of the years. Of course, it also gives recognition to all those professionals who, with their knowledge and support, have given soul to our industrial heritage. Our receipt of the Micheletti Award has led to substantial press coverage and we are sure that it will help us to continue building on the Museum’s reputation.
