Luis Barragan was arguably the most influential Mexican architect of the 20th century. His works engaged natural settings and pre-existing structures in an arresting interplay of shape and situation, presenting religious and traditional forms within a modernist aesthetic. Basically, Barragan’s vision transformed humble adobe abodes into rectilinear symphonies so striking that they could be considered divinely inspired.
In “Architecture As Revelation: Luis Barragan,” speaker Jose Bernardi of ASU’s Design School explores Barragan’s struggle to reconcile his modernity with his Catholic beliefs. Bernardi discusses whether the noted architect longed to turn his back on the modernist obsession with progress and whether inclusion of religious motifs was his way of projecting his internal spiritual world into this rational and secular milieu.
Wed., Aug. 31, 7 p.m., 2011
