El Born changes its name and ceases to be a memorial center

Barcelona"Memory disappears from the acronym, but not from the heart of the museum," says Carles García Hermosilla, who was appointed director of the Barcelona History Museum last December. From now on, the Born Museum will drop the initials CCM (Center for Culture and Memory) and will be called El Born. Barcelona History Museum. At the presentation of the new phase of the Barcelona History Museum, which also changes its name (the acronym Muhba will no longer be used), García Hermosilla emphasized that El Born and the Barcelona History Museum "will merge."

Both the new director of the Barcelona History Museum and the city's Councilor for Culture, Xavier Marcé, have emphasized the need for the Born to explain the Barcelona that emerged after 1714. "The story that will tell of modern Barcelona, ​​after 1714, will begin in the Villarro Room, will be free to visit and more experiential, and will end in the Castellví Room with a more audiovisual and interactive exhibition," García emphasized. "We are clear about what we want to explain, but we cannot yet specify how," Marcé added. In fact, there have been some changes compared to the project that was presented in February of last year, when García was not yet the director of the facility.At that time it was said that the Castellví room would show how European cities have survived; in the Villarroel room you could see Barcelona 1700, the guild city, And in the Casanova Hall, an exhibition will review the industrialization of Barcelona. This Thursday, at the presentation of this new phase, it was explained that the Casanova Hall will house temporary exhibitions.

Some changes are already visible, although there is no precise timeline for the new phase. The Market Space is located in the Born vestibule. This exhibition tells the story of the Born market and the urban changes that took place when it opened in 1876. Furthermore, the twenty-two panels on the balcony have been renovated. Another change will be the opening of a new Barcelona City Council publications bookstore, which will offer a selection of works on Barcelona and its history, next to the Castellví Hall.

Until the dismissal of the former director of El Born, Marta Marín-Dòmine, Memory was one of the facility's main missions. "Memory is a polysemic concept and, in all its dimensions, will be incorporated into the museum's activity, research, and raison d'être," stated the museum's new director. For example, the next exhibition, which has been created in collaboration with the Spanish government, will be about the anti-Franco student movement, as part of the events of the 50 years of Spain in freedom. That is, the half century since the death of dictator Francisco FrancoOne thing that won't change is the search: excavation will continue at the site to find out what lies behind the "final snapshot."