South America Photos 5 - Structures of Eladio Dieste

Home - 1 Buenos Aires - 2 Bariloche - 3 Buenos Aires - 4 Uruguay - 5 Eladio Dieste - 6 Cariló, Mataderos, Bs. As. - 7 Iguazú and San Ignacio - 8 Córdoba and Mendoza - 9 Cafayate - 10 Uyuni - 11 La Paz, Lake Titicaca - 12 Lares Valley, Machu Picchu - 13 Cusco, Pacific Coast - 14 Lima, flights home

Visits to some of the works of Eladio Dieste (1917 - 2000), the Uruguayan engineer who pioneered reinforced brick shells.

Gimnasio del Colegio Don Bosco, Montevideo, 1983. The telltale Gaussian vaults are visible from the street when the door to this gymnasium is open.

the double-curved surfaces make the roof shells sturdy, allowing them to measure a mere 15 cm

the asymmetry allows for windows, here opening to the south to avoid direct sunlight (incidentally, this gives some peculiar characteristics to the gym, as the players on one side have the light shining into their faces all the same; additionally, if their shots go too high, they are liable to break the windows)

yet, the illumination is wonderfully diffuse

cantilevered steel ties catch the thrust of the vaults

the roof

SA_VI_14_Dieste_Montevideo_Shopping (153K)

Montevideo Shopping, 1985. Through successive enlargements, this shopping center has sadly lost its architectural definition and the (presumed) original qualities of interior space. Only views on detail level reveal elements that still seem alive today

Iglesia de Cristo Obrero (Church of Christ the Worker), Estación Atlántida, 1960. After walking 3 km from the bus stop, I finally spied the campanile emerging between the sheds and houses that constitute this village along a highway.

in its perfect shape, the church in Atlántida seems to belong to a different world

the undulating roof shell is an ingenious self-supporting construction; here the choir

view of the interior

the bell tower: at the time not accessible to visitors, one can stick in a camera all the same

Iglesia de San Pedro (Saint Peter's Church), Durazno, 1971. The previous church in this place burned down in 1967, save for the façade and towers, and Dieste rebuilt everything behind the entrance, again using reinforced brick.

again this incredible sensitivity for light and atmosphere

the floating roof

the rose over the entrance receives its light from windows facing the plaza behind

from outside, the peculiar juncture of old and new -- this church lives from its interior space

Gimnasio, Durazno, 1975. Unfortunately not accessible when I visited

If you would like high-resolution photographs or additional views of these buildings, please do no hesitate to contact me!