19 March 2016 // Anona van der Linde //Antwerp

//SUN, SHINE!

Because the weather has been so lovely the past week(s) - the sun has been shining a lot; I’m totally feeling the spring vibe and can’t wait to be outside more. That’s why I wanna share some inspiring sunny architecture this week - by Luis Barragán.

Casa Calvez, San Angel, Mexico City, 1954

Luis Barragán was a Mexican architect and engineer, born in 1902 in Guadalajara, Mexico. He is known as the most prominent Mexican architect and he is also a major figure in international 20th century architecture. His architecture still is a great inspiration for contemporary artists and architects. It is defined by bright colors, use of light and modernist lines.

Barragán studied at the Escuela Libre de Ingenieros in Guadalajara, to be an engineer. He graduated in 1923, but he continued his studies for a degree in architecture. After finishing his studies, he took a two year (learning) trip to Europe, where he visited France, Spain, Italy and Greece. In 1925 he visited the Exposition des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, where he becomes acquainted with the books of Ferdinand Bac - an artist, writer and landscape gardner. From Bac, Barragán got to know about the art of landscaping and how gardens can be a fascinating place for meditation.

Casa Gilardi, Tacubaya, Mexico City, 1976

First Barragán's use of colors were mainly red, blue and white. But in 1931 he travelled to Europe again, and after this trip his work began to bloom. This time he meets Ferdinand Bac, Mexican mural painter Jose Clement Orozco (from whom he learned to experience dramatic color on a large scale), and Le Corbusier. Later in his life, Barragán attended lectures by Le Corbusier and became an admirer of European Modernism. The minimal shapes and lines we see in his work are influenced by Modernism. Le Corbusier said ‘a house is a machine for living’ meaning that a house should be built by functionalism. Barragán however wanted to achieve 'emotional architecture’ and he did this through his use of color, light and materials such as wood and stone. He managed to create a distinct style, in which traditional Mexican architecture and European Modernism fuse together. The result is something that is on the one hand very Mexican, while also being thoroughly universal. The colors he uses are typical for Mexican culture, colors that blaze in the sun and have been featured in everyday life and rituals.

Until his age of 74 his work mostly went unrecognized. In 1976 the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY honored him with a retrospective. And in 1980 he was awarded with the Pritzker Prize, the highest award to receive in architecture. This gave him the international recognition he deserved.

Tlalpan Chapel, Mexico City, 1953

Casa Luis Barragán, Calle Francisco Ramírez, Mexico City, 1947

In 2004 his personal home, the Barragán home and studio on Calle Francisco Ramírez in Mexico City, which he designed himself, was declared a World Heritage Site. From the outside the building doesn’t tell you much about the inside - the facade is plain and flat. The house focusses on the inside, with the garden in the center and high walls surrounding it, this was to keep out the ‘urban chaos’. He used strong color schemes and the house doesn’t need artificial light during the day, it has large windows and openings to let in the light from the outside. The heights of the rooms are all different, which gives you a different feeling in every room. He also uses his typical minimal staircases, without railings.

The house is now a museum you can visit. So, if you’re ever in Mexico City... I think this will be a very inspiring place to take a look!

Casa Luis Barragán, Calle Francisco Ramírez, Mexico City, 1947