1953
Cordoba City Hall, Cordoba
SEPRA - Santiago Sánches Elía, Federico Peralta Ramos and Alfredo Agostini

Address: Marcelo T de Alvear 120 (La Cañada) esq. Caseros. Paseo Sobremonte
City: Cordoba
State: Cordoba
Country: Argentina

The triangular block at the downtown area is occupied by two interconnected buildings, an 8-floors over pilotis extended tower and a square 2-floors slender porticated pavilion, both combining exposed concrete structures and some brick finishing. The taller building for the municipality offices is supported by carefully designed V-columns; a detached brise-soleil frame protects two of the glassed façades. While this building shows a creative transformation of Corbusier’s suggestions, the lower pavilion, with a more slender concrete structure defines a more classical composition that hints on Mies Van der Rohe’s contributions. Both Modern maestros seem to have contributed to the Brutalist language, that leans on Corbusier’s expressivity but prefers the fixedness of Mies structural plans instead of the repetitive punctuation of Le Corbusier’s free plan. 

GROSSMAN, Luis J., Peralta Ramos en la Arquitectura, Buenos Aires, Ediciones Infinito, 2006, p. 60-65

SCHERE, Rolando, Concursos 1826-2006, Buenos Aires, Sociedad Central de Arquitectos, 2008, p. 249-250

CAD Design: Gabriela Leonardo Ferez

1953
Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Church, Mexico D.F.
Félix Candela

Address: Ixcateopan 78, Benito Juarez
City: Mexico D.F.
State:
Country: Mexico

Designed by Candela himself, this masterpiece with inclined concrete surfaces was the first of a series of religious buildings that maybe considered as a varied experimental laboratory of spatial possibilities of hypars (hyperbolic paraboloid - HP). Following tradition, the church is aligned with the north south axis with a small entrance narthex, an east side corridor while the west side opens up with rows of inclined columns that characterizes also the interior spaces. The concrete thickness of only 4 cm (1.5”) organizes a series of 21 HPs organize a higher central and two lower lateral naves that open up at the altar area; the natural light enters by the lateral triangular openings refracting at the concrete surfaces enhancing the chiaroscuro religious ambiance.

ALANÍS, 2010 p.30-35;

NOELLE, Louise, Catalogo Guia de Arquitectura Contemporanea Ciudad de México, México, Compañia Editorial Electro-Comp, 1993, p.54

1953
São Carlos Engineering School – Building B-1
Hélio de Queiroz Duarte, Ernest Robert de Carvalho Mange

Address: Campus USP - São Carlos
City: São Carlos
State: Sao Paulo
Country: Brazil

The schematic transversal section synthesizes the parti of the block that may be seen as the result of its extrusion. Three floors elevated on pilotis leave the ground floor almost entirely free. The trapezoidal section of the transverse beams is economical and with the hanging ceiling defines a horizontal void for utilities, plus the vertical duct defined by the central void of the double columns.  The north-south orientation of its long facades, with corridors running along the north side of the building, prevents direct sunlight to reach the classrooms and administrative areas; the narrow character of the block facilitates cross ventilation. Inspired perhaps on Le Corbusier’s Swiss Pavilion this building has a completely opposite, engineer-oriented, rational and modularly repetitive approach to the structural solution.

ZEIN, Ruth, A Arquitetura da Escola Paulista Brutalista, São Paulo e Porto Alegre, 2005, (Tese de Doutoramento) Faculdade de Arquitetura da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul; p.104-5; 

REVISTA HABITAT, n.33, Ago, 1956;

REVISTA ACRÓPOLE, n.249, Jul, 1959

CAD Design: Julio Beraldo Valente