MAAT — Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology
MAAT (Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology) is a contemporary museum on the Tagus waterfront in Belém, Lisbon, comprising two interconnected spaces: the new wave-form gallery building designed by British architect Amanda Levete and opened in 2016, and the historic Central Tejo power station, a former industrial landmark that generated electricity for Lisbon from 1909 to 1972 and now serves as one of the museum’s main exhibition halls. Together, they form one of Portugal’s most architecturally distinctive cultural venues.
At a glance
- Type
- Contemporary art, architecture and technology museum
- Period
- Central Tejo: 1909–1972 (industrial); new building opened October 2016
- Style
- Industrial heritage (Central Tejo) + contemporary parametric architecture (AL_A, Amanda Levete)
- Location
- Avenida de Brasília, Belém, Lisbon, Portugal
- Coordinates
- 38.6959° N, 9.1966° W
Overview
MAAT is managed by the EDP Foundation (Fundação EDP), the cultural arm of the Portuguese energy company, and focuses on art at the intersection of technology, science, and contemporary society. The museum hosts rotating international exhibitions, site-specific commissions, and an architecture collection, while the Central Tejo’s surviving turbine halls, boiler rooms, and ash-handling infrastructure are preserved as monumental industrial heritage. The rooftop walkway of the new gallery building, clad in undulating white ceramic tiles, has become one of Lisbon’s most photographed contemporary architectural landmarks.
History
The Central Tejo power station was constructed between 1909 and 1951 in multiple phases to meet Lisbon’s growing demand for electricity, eventually becoming the main generating plant for the city’s tram network and domestic supply. It was decommissioned in 1972 following the commissioning of the Tejo thermal power station and the expansion of the national grid. The EDP Foundation acquired the site and spent years restoring the industrial infrastructure before opening it as a cultural venue; the new Amanda Levete building was added adjacent to the historic structure and opened to the public in October 2016, completing the MAAT complex.
What you see
The Central Tejo section preserves its original turbines, generators, overhead cranes, and control rooms on a monumental industrial scale, offering a visceral encounter with early 20th-century energy infrastructure alongside contemporary art installations. The new gallery building by AL_A features a flowing elliptical form clad in 15,000 white ceramic tiles and a continuous rooftop walkway with panoramic views over the Tagus. Inside, flexible gallery spaces host major international contemporary art and architecture exhibitions, with the building’s structure itself part of the visitor experience.
Cultural significance
MAAT represents an internationally significant example of industrial heritage adaptive reuse, combining the preservation of a major early 20th-century power station with a landmark piece of 21st-century architecture. Its location in Belém, alongside UNESCO-listed monuments, reinforces the district’s status as Lisbon’s premier cultural corridor, and the museum’s focus on technology and the built environment gives it a distinctive identity within Europe’s contemporary art landscape.
Practical information
- Address
- Avenida de Brasília, Central Tejo, 1300-598 Lisboa, Portugal
- Hours
- Check the official MAAT website (maat.pt) for current hours and admission prices
- Admission
- Ticketed; check maat.pt for current prices and combined-ticket offers
Getting there
From central Lisbon, tram line 15E runs from Praça da Figueira and Cais do Sodré directly to Belém, stopping near MAAT. Train services from Cais do Sodré (Cascais line) stop at Belém station, a 10-minute walk along the riverside promenade. Buses 727 and 751 also serve the area. The museum is directly on the Tagus waterfront cycle path from central Lisbon (approximately 7 km). By car, parking is available along Avenida de Brasília.