Author: Sam Goecke

New cities, buildings, food, and friends

I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to travel to a country with such interesting and diverse architecture. This experience was unlike any other because it was one thing to sit in a classroom and learn about architecture, but then to be able to travel across the world and see it first-hand was very unique.

When I told my family and friends that I was traveling to Chile, most of their initial reactions were something along the lines of “What’s there to see in Chile?”. I think that most people’s preconceived notions of South American cities are not very architecturally interesting. Admittedly, I initially wasn’t exactly sure what there was to see in Chile, but after this trip I am able to tell everyone how intriguing the architecture and landscape of Chile actually is.

One thing that really stuck out to me was how the architecture responds to the terrain and landscape of Chile. Being a very mountainous region, I could imagine that building a structure on this terrain would be extremely difficult. However Chilean architects such as Smiljan Radic and Alejandro Aravena take this challenge in stride and use it to create some very interesting pieces. I was particularly interested in the Adolfo Ibanez campus and how it was constructed far up in the hills. Winding roads lead to the beautiful school, and once you are inside it is hard to imagine how a space so unique could have been constructed on anything but a treacherous, sloping terrain. It truly fits in perfectly with the landscape, and the challenging terrain is part of what makes it such a unique place.

This trip has inspired me to think more analytically about the architecture around me, as well as challenge myself in my own designs. The experience I gained on this trip is something that cannot be taught in the classroom and is truly invaluable. I am very grateful to have made lots of new friends and to have experienced such a unique country and all of its culture.

One city, many cultures

A governmental building near Valparaíso port

View of Valparaíso hillside

Colorful historic facades

I thoroughly enjoyed visiting Valparaíso, and one of the most interesting things that I learned on the day trip was the qualifications for Valparaíso becoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and all of the regulations that must be followed to maintain that status. I did some more research on the UNESCO website and learned that the significance of the site has to do with the eclectic mix of culture that resulted from the many settlers from different countries stopping at Valparaíso. One thing that I found particularly interesting was the fact that in order to follow UNESCO regulations, only the facades of buildings need to be preserved. This regulation resulted in some interesting architecture, such as the first picture in this post. This governmental building still complies with UNESCO regulations because the outermost facade is still in tact, however a glass-clad building emerges out of the top. Although I was not a fan of this particular building, I think that the overall concept presents the opportunity to experiment with a blend of new and old architecture. Also, this allows architects to continue to renovate the interior of buildings to suit the needs of people living in the city, while still maintaining the iconic appearance that Valparaíso is known for. UNESCO recognizes the fact that buildings will require maintenance in order to stay operating, so specific measures have been put in place to identify where and what buildings can be amended.

I really enjoyed looking around the city and seeing the innumerable historic buildings, each with their own character. Some buildings appear very dilapidated, however it is important to remember that they serve a historical purpose as well as a functional purpose. Looking inside some of the windows I noticed interiors that had recently been updated to fit the needs of people living there. However, every building contained a historic facade, which was not only visually appealing to me as a tourist, but also gave a glimpse into the past about the various cultures that passed through the city and left their mark, creating the picture that Valparaíso is today.

Lo Contador PCU…does it work?

Section and plan of PCU Lo Contador

I really enjoyed visiting the Lo Contador PCU architecture campus today, and after analyzing the plan and section I realized that when first visit a piece of architecture it is very easy to get caught up in how it looks, and fail to consider its functionality. I thought it was interesting that when we stopped to talk to a man who worked in the building, he said “the architecture is beautiful…but it just doesn’t work, it’s not functional”. This comment made me stop and analyze the architecture more closely to see what he meant by this. Only visiting for a few hours, I thought that the buildings and landscape were beautiful and the patio was a nice place to sit. However, I put myself in the place of a student or teacher who is there everyday and I realized some of the flaws in the design. Most of the buildings are not connected, and can only be accessed by walking outside. This could become a problem in the event of rain or other weather. Also a lot of the “interior” spaces were only covered by cantilevers. Another spot that struck me as lacking functionality was the roof of the design building. It was a beautifully designed space, but the hot sun made it almost unbearable to occupy. All of these things are aspects that are very important to how the building functions for the user, which is often overlooked or compromised for the sake of an aesthetically appealing design. It was interesting to experience the architecture for the first time, and then hear the opinion of someone who uses it everyday. The campus was very unlike any traditional building or American campus, which usually has distinct floors and methods of circulation, so it was refreshing to experience a space that tested the limits of architecture.

The Perfect Plaza

Analysis of Plaza de Armas and surrounding buildings

Today we visited Plaza de Armas, which was a unique landscape unlike any I had ever seen before. I included my diagram of the plaza in this post, and I found it very interesting to analyze the space and the very clear system with which it was designed and constructed. In its simplest form, Plaza de Armas is a datum of trees, however when we got the chance to walk around the plaza, I noticed that there were several other datums overlapping the datum of trees, such as benches and planters. I also found it interesting that the density of trees increased as you move southward into the park. As a class we concluded that this was to allow sunlight in from the north, but I also thought that it could have been designed in this way to allow a clear view of the cathedral, which is located at the northwest corner of the plaza. In my diagram I also drew each of the 4 facades next to their corresponding cardinal direction. I thought that this was an interesting way to view the facades because in the real world they can never be viewed all at once next to each other because of the tall trees blocking the view. When the facades are viewed next to each other I noticed several differences and similarities among them. The north and west facades are much more ornate and formal than the east and south facades, which read more as a datum of windows and don’t have any towers protruding upwards. I really enjoyed analyzing Plaza de Armas and this exercise made me realize the conscious design decisions that were made in the construction of this plaza.

Sam Goecke Pre-Departure

It seems like not too long ago we were just starting class and being introduced to all of the basics of Chilean culture and architecture. Now we are one day away from departing for Santiago, and I couldn’t be more excited. I still haven’t packed or done laundry for the trip, so I have a busy night ahead of me.

It was very exciting to talk to Aimee on FaceTime today because she updated us on all of the restaurants and sites that we are going to visit. I think that I am most excited to get out of the cold Ohio weather and finally get to experience the climate in Santiago. Seeing the weather forecast for our trip has also made me very excited because it looks like it will be sunny and warm every day, which is a much needed change from our current temperatures.

I can’t wait to try lots of new foods while in Santiago. When I was younger I used to be much pickier about the foods I ate, but in the past few years I have grown to enjoy trying new foods, and I think it will be very interesting to try authentic foods from a completely different country.

I am looking forward to boarding the plane tomorrow, and hope that our travels go smoothly so that we can have a great start to our trip!