Olot, the capital of La Garrotxa, is a land of volcanoes surrounded by mountains and wetlands. The changes it has experienced over the years -in which the Malagrida family has played an important role- are representative of many of the transformations that have taken place in Catalan society.

History

Olot is the birthplace of one of the most popular twentieth-century figures in Catalonia, Manel Malagrida i Fontanet, the city’s favourite illustrious son. His life course changed drastically when he decided to emigrate to Argentina at the age of 24. Specifically, in 1890, he set up a cigar shop there, which became the starting point of an important career in the world of tobacco. First, he created the La Invencible factory, and later he ran another one called El Telégrafo. However, the most important event occurred in 1901 and 1902, when he announced the ‘Cigarrillos Paris Poster Contest’, in which major artists from over the world participated.

Shortly thereafter, in 1904, after he came back from South America, Manel Malagrida moved to Barcelona's Passeig de Gràcia and created a second home in Olot, where he had Casa Malagrida built, the current Torre Malagrida hostel-residence.1 The building was designed by Bonaventura Bassegoda i Amigó and constructed between 1921 and 1922.

Thanks to the fortune he made with his tobacco business, Malagrida was able to invest in a variety of private initiatives and social projects. Thus, he and the municipal architect Joan Roca designed the Ciutat Jardí d'Olot [Olot Garden City] to pay homage to the Spanish-American Union. The project not only changed Olot's cityscape but also became a reference point for Catalonia as a whole thanks to the modernity of the urban structures in the 1920s.

This Garden City was opened in 1927 with the appearance of King Alphonse XIII and the royal family, who ended the day by having tea at Can Malagrida.

The Malagrida family kept its home in Olot until it was confiscated in the Civil War and they were forced to go into exile in Italy. At the end of the war, they got their property back, although they only used it as a summer home. However, its gradual abandonment brought it to a state where it was on the verge of being torn down. Given these circumstances, in 1983 the City Hall purchased the building for a symbolic amount, catalogued it, restored it and earmarked it for public use. And similarly, in 1988 one of the floors was renovated to be used as a small youth hostel, where guests could only spend the night, at that time. In fact, the entire building did not operate as a hostel-residence until six years later.

In 1992, under the aegis of the Olot City Council, a school activity programme was launched as a pilot test for all of Catalonia. And currently, the house is still a piece of heritage fully integrated into the life of the city which still conserves the names of its former owners: Torre Malagrida.

1. Although he frequently travelled to Argentina until 1910.

Reference books: Història d'Olot, Joaquim Danés i Torras.
Els Indianos, in Quaderns de la Revista de Girona, Girona Provincial Council.
Els cartells dels Cigarrillos París, published by the Museu Comarcal de la Garrotxa.