Clorindo Testa: The Latest Architecture and News

Until recently, the Sixth Pantheon of Chacarita was an icon of Argentine modern architecture that went unnoticed. Located in the heart of the city of Buenos Aires, this pantheon represents one of the first and one of the largest experiments in modern funerary architecture of such magnitude in the world.

Architecture Classics showcased on ArchDaily serve as essential archives of architectural marvels, offering a window into the past. These classics showcase our collective design wisdom and innovation globally, enriching our design knowledge. In fact, through the acknowledgment and appreciation of different styles, functions, and narratives embedded within these structures, our view of architecture and its impact worldwide can become more comprehensive.

Within ArchDaily’s extensive list of Architectural Classics, 2023 saw the exploration of 16 diverse typologies. From public landmarks like Mies Van der Rohe’s Barcelona Pavilion to the Julio Mario Sant Domingo Cultural Center and the Biblioteca El Tintal by Bermùdez Arquitectos, showcasing the power of public infrastructure. Structures such as Mariano Moreno’s National Library and Oscar Niemeyer’s Aeronautics Center highlight the eclectic nature of these classics.

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In the central Recoleta neighborhood of Buenos Aires, in a large lot between Austria Street, Agüero Street, and Del Libertador Avenue, stands the current building of the Mariano Moreno National Library, designed by architects Clorindo Testa, Francisco Bullrich, and Alicia Cazzaniga.

Built on the basis of the project that won first prize in a national competition in 1961, and completed in the early 1990s, it has become a landmark of modern Argentine architecture and an example of the variant of 20th century expressionism known as "brutalism".

Within South America, different dates have been established to pay tribute to and honour the career, life and work of architecture professionals. While in Uruguay it is celebrated every 27th of November in relation to the creation of the first Faculty of Architecture, in Brazil every 15th of December in homage to the birth of Oscar Niemeyer or in Chile every 4th of August for the founding of the College of Architects, the Argentine Federation of Architects' Associations (FADEA) kept the 1st of July to commemorate the Day of the Argentinean Architect, respecting the establishment of the International Day of Architecture, established by the International Union of Architects (UIA) in 1985.

Relatively unknown outside his home country, Clorindo Testa (December 10, 1923 – April 11, 2013) was one of Argentina’s most important 20th-century architects. Consistently defying categorization, Testa had a hand in two of Buenos Aires’ most iconic buildings, the Bank of London and South America, and the National Library, as well as many others throughout his long career. Characteristically enigmatic, Testa would only ever acknowledge Le Corbusier as an influence, saying, “I never paid attention to other architects.” As a former colleague Juan Fontana described, Testa spoke the language of brutalism with an Argentine accent.

Architectural comprehension as a field deals with representation as a synthesis of varied efforts —constructive, compositional, spatial, and technical qualities— which are then articulated in the constructed building. For this purpose, it is essential to think about the graphic representation that presupposes all these efforts, since it is both a procedure and a product of architectural design.

It is difficult to forget about the demolition of Clorindo Testa’s Commissariat of Santo Pipó and with it, the demolition of part of the Argentine architecture.

With the objective of addressing issues related to the rescue and protection of the forgotten and deteriorated buildings, the MMM3 (Modern Movement in Missions) of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (UNaM) held an exhibition on October 31 in the locality of A. Del Valle.

The exhibition is part of the 60th anniversary of other works of the architect in the Argentine northeast: the Tourist Paradores, three buildings located in A. del Valle, San Ignacio and San Pedro product of the architects Boris Davinovic, Augusto Gaido, Francisco Rossi and Clorindo Testa. 

“Concrete has the ability to be primitive and technological, massive and levitating, to combine the properties of steel with those of mud,” says Rowan Moore in his list of The 10 best concrete buildings created for The Guardian. Through examples spanning three continents, Moore unites old standbys with unexpected wonders, all of which show the varied possibilities inherent in mixing water, aggregate, and cement. In a list that incorporates examples from Classical times to the present, Moore establishes concrete’s unique ability to adapt to different times, styles, applications, and treatments.

Examples by Le Corbusier, Álvaro Siza, Lina Bo Bardi, and Marcel Breuer demonstrate that concrete is anything but workaday or utilitarian. Moore’s list affirms that a material simultaneously strong and light, durable, sustainable, and fire-resistant, can scarcely be considered anything short of miraculous. Of course, ten buildings can only provide an abridged version of concrete’s possibilities, and Moore cheekily apologizes for some of the obvious omissions. Check out the full list here.