The Modern Man | Juan O’Gorman
“It’s too rare for Mexicans, but maybe it starts a new regional tradition. Most mortals, perhaps, have their home for a castle, but architects often consider theirs as a laboratory. Just to test ideas about housing, they can eat in caves, use pedestal chairs, sleep in underground vaults and grow gardens.” -Juan O’Gorman
Juan O’Gorman, born in 1905, was a Mexican painter and architect. His father was an Irish painter who immigrated to the Latin American country.
Despite the artistic influence of his father, Juan’s inspirations were almost entirely from the Mexican landscape and history. His uniqueness comes from this; never before had a Functionalist been so deeply rooted in muralism and Aztec motifs.
Influences: Le Corbusier
Juan O’Gorman was a modernist, socialist-leaning man whose work shared the vision Le Corbusier would introduce in Vers une architecture: an ideal of architecture solely focused on the practical. Functionalism was not a new idea, and examples of function-only designs can be found throughout history –
particularly in vernacular examples. In the past, the most basic function of a vernacular building would usually be prioritised. Still, after artistic and architectural revolutions like the Gothic, Renaissance, Rococo, etc. brought form to the forefront, it became easy to receive Functionalism as an all-new, refreshing ideology. This is a significant reason why O’Gorman’s architecture is so appealing; he designed many of his buildings all-in on the Functionalist ideal, even as his work evolved to accommodate the history of the land he built.
Influences: Mexico & Frank Lloyd Wright | Juan O’Gorman
It would be difficult not to see some Frank Lloyd Wright in Juan O’Gorman’s work. In both, modern styles meet primitive patterns in a mixture that Wright called “textile blocks.” O’Gorman’s new architecture evolved from his function-only ideology into a more organic aesthetic. The stylistic stoicism observed in the casa/Estudio designed for artists Diego Rivera, and Frida Kahlo sprouted into intricate patterns and ornate surfaces in later work as if the Mexican spirit had possessed and animated these buildings. It would be shortsighted to attribute this change as a mere homage to Wright’s work. Juan O’Gorman was a Mexican artist; he lived and breathed his culture. His approach was not merely because of the transcendental beauty of the textures and patterns of the Aztecs and the Mayans; it was a confirmation of his own identity. It is unsurprising then that one of the prominent examples of this new architecture was the architect’s own home.
Casa Cueva
Juan O’Gorman designed his own home in 1954, which would end up being his last work. In a few words: it was a kaleidoscopic structure merging/exploding from a cave. Mosaic ceilings followed the natural path of the rock with long terraces accommodating plants of a jungle-like quality. The house was that of a mystic…
Adding to the mystique of the Casa Cueva is the fact that it no longer exists. O’Gorman sold the house to Helen Escobedo in 1969 under a verbal agreement that the structure would be preserved. However, this agreement was not kept. Escobedo demolished parts of the house and renovated others to the point that the whole essence of Casa Cueva was lost. The resulting building was renamed “Casa Pueblo”. Escobedo was part of the “generacion de la ruptura,” rebelling against muralism and national styles. The work that O’Gorman had called “the most important work of my life” was gone.
Death and Legacy | Juan O’Gorman
O’Gorman’s decision to sell his house was one he had felt unavoidable. His daughter was sick, and he and his wife felt the need for a drier climate. It also proved deeply regrettable. O’Gorman’s Casa Cueva was one of the most significant examples of architecture profoundly rooted in Mexican culture. “Unarguably,” he once said (of his former house’s fate), “in Mexico, there is a difference of opinions which I’ve already referred to about the two currents of art that exist and prevail: one which corresponds to Mexico, its people, its tradition, its geography, and its history; the other is a current of art imported to our country.”
Plagued by depression and declining health, Juan O’Gorman would die by suicide on January 17, 1982. He left behind a strong sense of national identity and regional tradition. European influences often challenge Latin American art, and often (at least back then), artists have left behind their cultural identities in search of one that would better fit the international scene. O’Gorman’s work, alongside Kahlo, Rivera, and others, was a call back to their roots, a new sensibility that showed no need to detach entirely from one’s cultural past to fit in with the artistic themes of the time. O’Gorman’s work was a ‘call of the wild’, and many followed.
References:
Hammond, D. (2020) How ancient mayan architecture shaped Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie School, Newcity Design. Available at: https://design.newcity.com/2017/10/01/impact-of-the-indigenous-on-wrights-prairie-school-how-ancient-mayan-architecture-shaped-frank-lloyd-wright/ (Accessed: December 4, 2022).
Juan O’Gorman (no date) Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Available at: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Juan-OGorman (Accessed: December 4, 2022).
Liscia, V.D. (2022) The contentious history of a lost cave house in Mexico City, Hyperallergic. Available at: https://hyperallergic.com/772137/the-contentious-history-of-a-lost-cave-house-in-mexico-city/ (Accessed: December 4, 2022).
Images:
1_Casa by Juan O’Gorman_Lorenzo Zandri. [online] Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2020/03/30/modernist-juan-ogorman-rivera-kahlo-house-photos/
2_UNAM by Juan O’Gorman_Aldai Pulido. [online] Available at: https://divisare.com/authors/2144832826-juan-o-gorman
3_O’Gorman Home_Getty Images. [online] Available at: https://hyperallergic.com/772137/the-contentious-history-of-a-lost-cave-house-in-mexico-city/
4_Casa Cueva Floor Plans_Ivan Arellano. [online] Available at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/48821416@N02/4522594035
5_In Praise of Caves_Nicholas Knight. [online] Available at: https://hyperallergic.com/772137/the-contentious-history-of-a-lost-cave-house-in-mexico-city/
6_CasaCueva/CasaPueblo. [online] Available at: https://hyperallergic.com/772137/the-contentious-history-of-a-lost-cave-house-in-mexico-city/
7_Model of Casa Cueva. [online] Available at: https://hyperallergic.com/772137/the-contentious-history-of-a-lost-cave-house-in-mexico-city/
8_Juan O’Gorman & self portrait. [online] Available at: https://eltop.com.mx/datos-interesantes-arquitecto-mexicano-juan-ogorman/
