The National Museum of Science and Technology of Catalonia (MNACTEC) has collaborated with Eumo Editorial and the Capellades Paper Mill Museum in publishing Paper Mill Graffiti, by the artist David Ribas. The work reveals the graffiti still to be found on the walls of former paper mills in the Anoia and Riudebitlles river basins.
The book is the result of extensive fieldwork conducted over the course of many years. The author has visited dozens of former paper mills in the Anoia and Riudebitlles river basins, entering the balconies where the paper was stretched out to dry, to uncover and photograph hundreds of examples of graffiti still to be found on the walls of these buildings.
These balconies were a highly distinctive feature of the old paper mills, and can still be identified by sight from the outside, thanks to the "windows", or openings allowing the wind to enter and dry out the paper. They were located on the upper floors, and were full of cords on which the sheets were stretched out. It is here that a great many examples of graffiti can still be seen today.
This graffiti, left by the mill workers in between their tasks, represents an outstanding documentary and human heritage. It includes calculations connected with production, dates and occurrences, personal notes, drawings and brief compositions revealing daily life from the late 19th century up until more recent eras.
The publication features a foreword by the art historian Joan Maria Minguet, proclaiming the artistic nature of graffiti.
Paper Mill Graffiti is the third volume in the Factory collection, intended to restore and showcase the heritage of the paper industry.
The book will be presented at an event open to the general public, to be held at the Capellades Paper Mill Museum on Sunday, 14 December, at 12:30 p.m.
About the author
David Ribas (Barcelona, 1957) studied painting and mural decoration. His paintings have been produced at his studio in Sant Pere de Riudebitlles and on assignments to Morocco, Majorca, Japan and Sardinia.
He has exhibited his work in various cities around Catalonia and Spain, and also internationally, in Tokyo, Alghero, Tangier, Tetouan and France. He has likewise been involved in numerous collective shows in Barcelona, Berlin, Besiers, Nîmes, Tolosa, Lisbon, Rabat, Brussels, Strasbourg and many other locations.
5 December 2025
