Mobles demmagatzematge del Monestir. La grandesa del que és senzill'

In the former infirmary of the Pedralbes monastery, from 12 January 2021, a small display of the furniture kept by the religious community is offered, which stands out more for its historical value than for its artistic value. A collection of furniture of basic, simple and austere construction, in which utility and functionality prevail over any aesthetic aspect. Its origin, however, is diverse and, apart from commissions and dowries, comes from donations of patrimonial goods from Queen Elisenda, the founder of the monastery, and from the noblewomen who accompanied her in her cloistered life. That is why the display of furniture from the 14th to the 19th century that we present, although it prioritises container furniture suited to the needs of the monastery (worship, singing, the archive, the infirmary, clothing, reading), bears witness, albeit timidly, to furniture more typical of the female court sphere, which entered the monastery as part of the trousseau and dowry of many women from noble families and wealthy classes. Given that very few furniture pieces of this type have survived to our days, the collection of furniture we present in the exhibition is a unique opportunity to learn about the history of the monastery through its most everyday objects, which gives them a very remarkable cultural and patrimonial value. In the former infirmary of the monastery, time stands still as we observe the basic construction and the absence of decoration of the community's container furniture. Its design is governed by function, expressed through the qualities of simplicity and austerity, which remind us of the vow of poverty. They return us to what is essential, showing how good the elimination of the superfluous can be. The construction was usually the responsibility of the monastery's carpenter and the wrought iron was supplied by the locksmith, and, as it was costly, it was reused. Over the centuries, to store and safeguard objects, three forms of container have been devised, which meet different needs: Chests, ideal for moving, since the contents settle at the base; wardrobes, suited to keeping objects that must remain visible in fixed places; and chests of drawers, which protect the contents in sealed compartments. Based on these three structures and the variants that stem from them, the display we present has been organised according to criteria of the place where they were used or their function, and the exhibition content is arranged in 7 areas: Praying in the palace of Elisenda de Montcada; Healing the soul by singing in the choir; The chest, from universal container to dowry; Multifunctionality in past times; Wardrobes to administer the monastery; The wardrobes. Time stands still in the cloister; The walls as wardrobe structure. In addition to the furniture, along the route other elements are also exhibited, such as paintings, scagliola, a ceramic panel and various ceramic pieces that contextualise the discourse while enriching the ensemble chromatically, bringing us closer to the daily life of the community of Poor Clares.