In 1995, the Monterrey Chapter of the National Academy of Architecture announced a national competition for architectural ideas and concepts to design a Museum of Architectural Images and the headquarters of the Monterrey Chapter of the National Academy of Architecture. The competition requirements included:

“…the creation of a space that showcases the rich historical content of architecture to the community, from its origins through to 20th-century architecture.

The Museum of Images must be in keeping with our times and the expectations of the 21st century; beyond being a mere display of space, it should be a venue for communication, using streamlined spaces to showcase, through technological and multimedia resources, the historical audiovisual evolution of architecture over time”.

The venue for the competition was Parque Fundidora Monterrey, a major cultural and recreational complex located on the site of the former Fundidora Monterrey, one of Mexico’s first steel mills and a source of pride for Monterrey’s business community.

Although Fundidora Monterrey ceased operations in 1986, the residents of Monterrey decided to preserve the large furnaces as a reminder of the industry that gave birth to a great city. The park features an exhibition center (CINTERMEX), hotels, Arena Monterrey, an amusement park, a Theater-Auditorium, and 114 hectares of green spaces.

Project

The project is divided into seven sections: Exterior, Entrance, Management, Academy Headquarters, Museum of Images, Museum Services, and Future Expansion. In total, the project encompasses more than 2,115 square meters of floor space plus open areas.² de programa más espacios libres.

Concept “A solid within a void” “Sólido dentro de un vacío”.

We aim for our concept to emerge from a set of ideas that help us visualize the project even before drawing a single line.

Exploring philosophical approaches helps us develop a coherent and original idea, which ultimately translates into a solid architectural solution.

These approaches give the project freedom rooted in imagination, without seeking references in other architectural works, but rather in those gestures and ideas parallel to our craft that lead us down the desired path. sin buscar referencias en otras arquitecturas, sino aquellos gestos e ideas paralelas al oficio que nos lleven al camino deseado.

The museum is conceived as a single element within a cohesive set of ideas; although the project is a collaboration among three architects, the sketches and models are viewed as an exercise in impressionist painting—vague yet coherent ideas that define a direction and the desired concepts. colaboración de tres arquitectos, los croquis y maquetas son vistos como un ejercicio de pinturas impresionistas; ideas vagas pero coherentes que definen una dirección e ideas deseadas.

Various exercises are carried out, and it is hoped that intuition will point the way forward.

Each exercise is a variation on a theme, and as such, they reveal both shortcomings and successes from which we can learn.

It is essential to ask the right questions. At first, we have only a vague and indistinct idea that quickly evolves into a complex exercise.

It is not the purity of the image that we seek, but rather to demonstrate the power of the idea through a defined technique..

Three issues were raised:

1. Can the history of architecture be encapsulated and represented in the manner described in the call for proposals and the architectural program?
2. Is it possible to propose a solution that challenges the architectural program while still being representative of its history?
3. What role do the project’s site and volumetry play in relation to its context?

Based on these questions, we propose possible solutions to the architectural dilemma:

Is the project a large container that envelops the program?  

Can its aesthetic appear distant or intimate in light of the historical significance of the kilns?

The museum is a spectator.

The museum has two main activities:

1. The National Academy of Architecture
2. The Museum of Architectural Images

We analyzed the program and decided to separate these two activities. 

Academy = Solid

Museum = Space

From our perspective, these activities are mutually exclusive, as they represent two vastly different philosophies of architecture.

1. The Academy encompasses rules, dogmas, behaviors, and prejudices.
2. The Museum observes, contemplates, represents, and stages: it must capture the history of architecture through a critical lens.

One within the other, one above the other.

The rooms project images of what has happened or what is about to happen; the images are light, so the spaces must be enclosed; the rooms form a solid, a volume that encloses light.

Another space is the museum; it is a space of representation, where contemporary architecture awaits the critical eye., donde la arquitectura contemporánea espera al ojo crítico.

The Academy is situated beneath the space of representation, in a theater, partially sunken and metaphorically “distant”.

Circulation

From Giovanni Papini’s book GOG, we borrowed the idea of telling the story in reverse, structuring the project in the opposite order of what was specified in the program. First, contemporary history, and finally, Stone Age architecture. robamos la idea de narrar la historia al revés, articulando el proyecto al reverso de lo indicado en el programa.  Primero, la historia contemporánea y al final, la arquitectura de edad piedra. 

We believe this curatorial approach achieves a more objective perspective with greater impact. 

The media rooms are superimposed on the present-day architecture.

In the distance, one can see a container that encloses a volume floating within it..