La Moneda Palace
Display Cases Designed by Smijlan Radic
If I had to pick my favorite part of today, I honestly don’t think I could. I loved everything. I really enjoyed La Moneda cultural center and want to go back later in the week to look at the gift shops and to see if the main space will be open to the public. I just think it’s so interesting that the center was built beneath an existing structure, and was astonished at how bright and open it felt despite it being underground. I really liked the pre Colombian art museum, especially because of Smijlan Radic’s remodel of the interior. I really like his bold material choices and the contrasts he makes with them, and how he uses it to define and separate space.
Lastly, I enjoyed walking around plaza de armas and the downtown streets. I did struggle sketching plazas de armas because there was just so much to look at that I didn’t even know where to begin. I realized it’s very hard to sketch in plan when in such a large space-there’s no way to get a birds eye view to help you out with the placement of things. I was disappointed that we didn’t get to go into the cathedral, since I was really looking forward to seeing Radic’s crypt along with the older architecture of the cathedral. However, I will make sure to incorporate it into my free day to see it before I go.