Cultura Center of Spain in Mexico

With its strategic location in the historical center of Mexico City, the project generates an urban passage through the Spanish Cultural Center, allowing pedestrians to cross from Guatemala St. into Donceles St. The context conditions allowed a first part of the building conforms to the heights of the Colegio de Cristo, a seventeenth century two-story building, while a second volume conforms to the eight-story Hotel Catedral. Thus, the volume of the building negotiates with the morphology of the context conditions. The façade, made of concrete and Corten steel screens, seeks for a dialogue with the environment through reinterpretations solid- void colonial proportions, generating height transitions between immediate adjacencies. A series of terraces and ramps that connect to the existing building consolidates the SCC as a single area of great vitality and diversity of activities in the Historical Center. Through an invited competition the project from JSa and arquitectura911sc was selected as the wining proposal. The Spanish Cultural Center Expansion adds nearly 4,000 m2 of additional program spread over 5 stories and 2 basements. The new building program focuses on four main activities: performing areas, exhibition gallery, seminar and workshop rooms as well as a screening room. An archaeological site museum complements the program, it is located in the basement and it houses the remains of pre-hispanic constructions found during the building excavation.