AQUAM. The paths of water

AQUAM. The paths of water

28/04-07/09/2026

AQUAM. The Paths of Water is an exhibition project where seven contemporary artists, through their diverse creative processes, evoke the different paths of water as a metaphor for spiritual renewal and reflection on the flow of life. In this exhibition, water becomes an inspiring element that connects the visual with the emotional, the cultural with the historical, and oblivion with memory. Following this theme, Esteban Bernal 's works immerse us in aquatic architectures, in flooded spaces, whose dense atmospheres and soft light filters invite enjoyment, relaxation, and even a sense of mystery.

Paths that invite us to immerse ourselves in the history of humankind and its relationship with water and nature, as Pérez Casanova explores in his works , seeking that human interaction that has left its mark on the landscape, that great heritage visible today in our countryside. With his brushstrokes, the artist brings to life cisterns, aqueducts, and waterwheels as witnesses to an ancestral culture of water.

The irrigation ditches and canals, sometimes abandoned, are much more than mere vestiges for Antonio Gómez Ribelles ; they constitute an evocative narrative of humankind's relationship with the environment, which he captures in his Duets, with leaves as dry as the disused waterways. In this search for the path, the artist also discovers the humble aqueduct of Segóbriga.

But nothing flows forever. Sáenz de Elorrieta 's sculpture of the Faucet aims to warn that the immediacy of water, that everyday gesture of turning on the tap and receiving a crystalline stream, might not be guaranteed tomorrow. Along the same lines of reflection on humanity's relationship with water, Paloma Rodríguez presents The Search; a composition with glass, sand, remnants of a forest, and a rudimentary copper device pointing directly toward hope.

While Laura Molina uses the subtlety of her brushes to give shape to water itself, and her pigment, upon meeting the paper, tirelessly pursues the shore, Belén Orta stops time on the sand by pouring the alabaster where she has captured the ephemeral instant of a falling drop, fossilizing the movement in sculpted waves that hold, in their transparency, the silent echo of life.

The exhibition "Waterways" opens at the Roman Theatre Museum in Cartagena. This show by seven contemporary artists engages not only with the archaeological remains displayed in the gallery itself, but also with the ancient fountain that once supplied water to the port. The inscription AQVAM, which greets visitors, is preserved there, creating a direct link between the Roman past and the artists' works.

Artists :

Esteban Bernal Aguirre

Antonio Gómez Ribelles

Laura Molina Navarro

Belén Orta Núñez

Pedro Diego Pérez Casanova

Paloma Rodríguez del Castillo

Fernando Plácido Sáenz de Elorrieta

Temporary Exhibition Hall of the Roman Theatre Museum of Cartagena

From April 28 to September 7, 2026,
Museum of the Roman Theatre of Cartagena,
Plaza del Ayuntamiento, 9,
30201 Cartagena, Murcia (Spain),
Telephone: (+34) 968 504 802,
www.teatroromanocartagena.org,

Roman Theatre of Cartagena Foundation:
Cartagena City Council,
Autonomous Community of the Region of Murcia,
Caja Murcia Foundation

Collaborate

Iberdrola Foundation