Hydraulic works museum of Bajo Aragon

 The property “El Molinillo”, an old flouring mill turned into thread factory in 19th century, is located at the bank of the river Guadalope in Alcañiz.

The contest looks for an overall intervention over the mill and the adjacent aqueduct, restoring them to both hydraulic museum and offices for the Regional Government.

The proposal is based on an united conception valorizing artistic heritage – aqueduct, main elevation, building volume, masonry mill – and relation to the river. Rest of the building is ruined so it is proposed an inner empty to get clean spaces to fit new uses asked.

The building is organized from a longitudinal axis, defined by the prolongation of the line of the aqueduct, and two spaces in the extremes; the first, a triple-storey empty next to the main entrance, connects the museum areas allowing to see the masonry mill from ground floor to top; the second links the administrative zones and its independent entrance. Technical rooms and facilities are located next to the dividing wall with adjacent buildings to create clean spaces for offices or museum.

At the outside, the building keeps its simple and strict image in its volume, main elevation and aqueduct. The cornice line of the aqueduct, built with masonry also in the main elevation, is extended in the rest of the building to create an Alcañiz`s sandstone basement and resolve the meeting with topography.

Above that, main elevation is restored and the rest of the elevations are covered with copper sheet in brown tones. This change of material announces the change of use and the new public condition of the building.