Pottery Returns to the Museu del Disseny

The exhibition The Value of Water. Objects for its Management and Use showcases, for the first time, a selection of pottery pieces from the collection of the Museu del Disseny de Barcelona. Some of these pieces come from the Museu de la Terrissa dels Països Catalans in Oristà, where they had been deposited since the 1990s.

Ceramics are among the best-represented items in the museum’s collections. From Andalusian-style tableware to luxurious Baroque centerpieces or tea sets from the Far East, many of these objects are classified as “decorative arts”: luxury items that, despite having a functional purpose, were used only occasionally, as they were expensive pieces designed more for symbolic and representative purposes than for everyday use.

In contrast, the pottery collection—which includes all terracotta utensils made for daily use in any household—is less well known. Large jars for storing or transporting liquids, containers for preparing food in the kitchen, for serving food and drink at the table, washing clothes, or for personal hygiene. In short, the countless everyday actions that each of us routinely performs.

These are not always pieces in perfect condition, due to their origin: they once filled the vaults of Barcelona’s main Gothic churches, such as Nostra Senyora del Pi, the Old Hospital of Santa Creu, and the Convent of Sant Pere de les Puel·les, among others. Master builders purchased, from local potteries, defective, broken, poorly fired, or decoratively flawed material that nonetheless served its purpose: providing structural consistency to buildings without adding unnecessary weight.

Now, visitors can enjoy these pieces in an exhibition that explores the role of design and materials in obtaining, storing, and using water—an essential element for the functioning of households across different times and places around the world.