docomomo Guatemala: Release

¿POR QUÉ DOCOMOMO?

En las últimas décadas, la herencia arquitectónica del Movimiento Moderno, ha estado en más riesgo de ser destruida que durante cualquier otro período. Esta herencia edificatoria glorifica el espíritu dinámico de la Era de la Máquina.

A finales del los años 80, muchas obras maestras modernas fueron demolidas o alteradas a tal grado que ya no se pueden reconocer.

Esto sucede, principalmente, por el hecho que muchos de estos edificios no fueron considerados elementos patrimoniales.

HISTORIA

Docomomo Internacional es una organización no lucrativa. Fue fundada en 1988 por Hubert-Jan Henket, arquitecto y profesor y Wessel de Jonge, arquitecto e investigador, en la escuela de Arquitectura de la Universidad Técnica de Eindhoven, en los Países Bajos.

En el año 2002, el secretariado Internacional se reubica en Paris y actualmente sus oficinas se encuentran instaladas en el Palacio de Chaillot, en lo que hoy se conoce como La Ciudad de la Arquitectura y del Patrimonio.

Desde el año 2002 hasta la fecha, la dirección y la secretaría general de Docomomo Internacional ha estado a cargo de Maristella Casciato, arquitecta e historiadora y Emile d’Orgeix, historiadora de la Arquitectura, respectivamente.

Las principales metas de Docomomo se pusieron de manifiesto en las conclusiones de la conferencia inaugural en 1990 celebrada en Eindhoven y son las siguientes:

• Llevar el significado del Movimiento Moderno a la atención del público, las autoridades, los profesionales y la comunidad académica relacionada con el entorno edificatorio.
• Identificar y promover registros de las obras del Movimiento Moderno incluyendo catalogación, gráficos, fotografías, archivos y otros documentos.
• Fomentar el desarrollo de técnicas y métodos apropiados de conservación y divulgar este conocimiento a las profesiones involucradas.
• Oponerse a la destrucción y desfiguración de obras importantes del Movimiento Moderno.
• Identificar y atraer fondos para realizar actividades de documentación y conservación.
• Explorar y desarrollar el conocimiento del Movimiento Moderno.

LA MISIÓN DE DOCOMOMO ES:

• Actuar como guardián cuando cualquier edificio moderno importante se encuentre bajo amenaza de ser dañado o destruido.
• Intercambiar ideas relacionadas con conservación, tecnología, historia y educación.
• Fomentar el interés en las ideas de la herencia del Movimiento Moderno.
• Inculcar la responsabilidad de resguardar la reciente herencia arquitectónica.

Desde su creación, Docomomo Internacional ha experimentado un crecimiento rápido, estableciéndose, no sólo como el mayor protagonista en el campo de la conservación sino que también en el amplio campo de la cultura arquitectónica.

La naturaleza pluralista y multidisciplinaria de Docomomo Internacional, ha sido de sus mayores logros ya que reúne a historiadores, arquitectos, urbanistas, conservadores, profesores y estudiantes.

Actualmente, Docomomo Internacional lo conforman 52 capítulos y más de 2000 miembros, desde Europa hasta Japón, desde Australia hasta Norte, sur y ahora Centro América. En la variedad de culturas y experiencias redunda la riqueza de esta organización.

Guatemalan Architecture and the emblematic buildings of the Modern Movement

Guatemala, with an immense architectural and urban legacy from its Mayan roots, tells its own history and ideological development through its artistic and cultural manifestations, Architecture is one of these that expresses the people’s spirit.

The aesthetic expressions are the result of a fusion between the folklore and the academy. Nevertheless; it is said that after the arrival of the Europeans, the construction systems and construction equipment, were changed and adapted to the geographic and topographic characteristics of the area, since non of old treaties of Serlio or Palladio brought by the conquerors were reproduced with accuracy due to the intense seismic activity that prevails in the country.

For that reason the concept of the Baroque and Ultra-Baroque styles would acquire a very particular and original adaptation that only could be obtained in this country. Besides the earthquake of 1773 forced the colonial settlement of Santiago de los Caballeros moved to a new location in the nearby valley La Ermita in 1776.

When independence took place, most important buildings obeyed to the style of foreign architecture, one of the reasons why most of them have neoclassical ornamentation but their disposition in terms of architectural space adapted to the natural surroundings where it is located.

After seven decades of liberal governments, the change came of 1944 democratic revolution and with new prevailing policies, the private architectural practice decreased, although a new era was arriving. By this time some of the first public modern buildings began to emerge.

Surpassing the recession and the old prevailing paradigms, between 1950 and 1968, the architectural production began to formulate space alternatives for society’s new needs. The most important was that conceptualization would take a different direction: concrete plane roof replaced the Spanish clay tile roof and the old bell towers and domes gave place to a new skyline.

This architectural legacy was possible because of the visionary work of masterful architects like Roberto Aycinena, Jorge Montes Córdoba, Carlos Haeussler, Raúl Minondo, Pelayo Llarena, among others, who left a legacy to Guatemalan history with the construction of the Civic Center and the State’s University central campus.


Civic Centre

The buildings of the Civic Centre was conceived as an urban unity, where sculpture and murals were a part of the architectural body, in such a way that if they ever separated, that unit would be disintegrated, losing its rhythm and sense.

Architect Aycinena, then Chief Designer of City Hall, was in charge of planning this work, which, according to his evaluation, has been very much respected.

The new proposal, united by means of a subtle guiding threads, -the murals of Maestro Carlos Mérida- consisted in creating a civic landscape with artificial elements. Within the architectural values of the group of buildings forming this center it is worthy to emphasize the solution for lightning and ventilation, accomplished through the orientation of structures and the use of brise-soliel and plastic integration between murals, sculpture and architecture.




City Hall Building
Source:
Br. Samuel Mérida, DG.
Edited:
Mda. Arq. E. Saravia

Possibly it is difficult to conceive the magnitude of this project, since urban proposal was never completed, however, using your imagination, you can take a glimpse of what would have been the unit of plazas of horizontal circulation that would develop on the roof of the first floor of Bank of Guatemala building to conduct pedestrians from a train station –located exactly behind this bank- toward the City Hall and to the Cultural Center Miguel Angel Asturias.

Guatemala Social Security Institute Building.
Carlos Mérida.
"Social Security allegory" 1960
Source:
http://www.galasdeguatemala.com

With certainty, you can say that this urban complex still maintain alive the principles on "The heart of the city", and becouse its the testimony of a particular and local way to understand the modernity it was declarated national heritage.

---------
Source:
Dr. Arq. Raúl Monterroso
Arq. Rafael Aycinena
Mda. Arqta. Sonia Fuentes
Mda. Arq. Edwin Saravia

Architects Biographies

Brief biography of the principal architects and artists of Guatemalan Modern Movement

Roberto Aycinena Echeverría. Arq.(1917-2006)
Sciences and Letters Bachelor, Instituto Modelo, Guatemala (1938)
Economics Bachelor, Economics Faculty, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
He was scholarship from Evansville College, USA in economics studies.
Architect, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM (1955)
He was incorporated into Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
Postgraduate Course: High Theory of Architecture.
Architect Mayor, Guatemala City.
University Professor. Member of prestigious national and foreign institutions.

Jorge Mariano Montes Córdoba, Arq. (1927)
High School Diploma, French School, Morelos, Mexico (1946)
Architect, Auburn University, USA (1952)
He made several professional seminars and studies over the years.
President of the Society of Architects in Guatemala. Central American Federation of Architects. Chairman Dean of the Architecture Faculty, University of San Carlos de Guatemala.
President of the Partnership for Urban Development educators.

Pelayo Llarena Murua (1924)
Sciences and Letters Bachelor, Infantes College, Guatemala (1943)
Bachelor of Science in Architecture, University of Illinois, USA (1949)
He was incorporated into Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
Postgraduate in Architecture Theory, Guatemala Medal winner for the Societé des Architéctes Diplomáe par le Gouverment, France.
Head of projects in signing Day & Zimmermann, Inc.
Pelayo Architect and collaborators. Chief Architect of the signing Pelayo Llarena and collaborators.

Raúl Minondo Herrera (1924)
Sciences and Letters Bachelor, Infantes College, Guatemala (1943)
Civil Engineer, Harvard University (1946)
Architect, Harvard University (1949)
Associated Signing, Minondo & Cordón Co-Founder of Architects Central America Federation. Architectural Desing Professor.

Carlos Alberto Haeussler Uribio (1923)
Sciences and Letters Bachelor, Instituto Nacional Central para Varones (1945)
Architect, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)(1953)
He conducted specialization studies in the U.S.A. and Europe. University Professor.

Efraín Enrique Recinos Valenzuela (1928)
Sciences and Letters Bachelor, Instituto Normal Central, Guatemala Civil Engineer, Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala
Painting and sculpture, Fine Arts School, Guatemala. Self-taught painter. Leicester Polytechnic, London.
Visual arts and Ceramics, Guatemala Acoustics auditoriums with Dr. William Jordan of Denmark. Graphic Artist, designer, painter, sculptor, head of works, technical adviser, designer and architect.

Roberto González Goyri (1924)
Sculptor and painter.
National Academy of Fine Arts in Guatemala; Fellow in 1948 in New York, "Arts Students League" and "Clay Sculpture Center."
Participated in national and international exhibitions.
He was director of the National School of Plastic Arts.
His sculpture is characterized by synthesizing of human figures and other elements.
Author of the murals of the Guatemalan Social Security Institute (west facade) and National Mortgage Credit Building (east facade)

Carlos Mérida (1924-1984)
Painter.
He traveled abroad, and therefore had the opportunity to meet Pablo Picasso, Diego Rivera, Roberto Montenegro, Jorge Enciso and other artists.
He designed the cover of the first edition of the book "A man who looked like a horse" by Rafael Arévalo Martínez.
He settled in México where he devoted himself to painting easel and the mural.
Edited several portfolios of prints that, include indigenous Guatemalans and Mexicans costumes. He made several exhibitions nationally and internationally.
In addition to the murals that designed and implemented in Guatemala, within the Civic Center, in Mexico is the Multifamiliar Benito Juárez buildings. Also the Museum of Modern Art in Guatemala bears his name.