Photo by Guillermo Blanco

Plaza San Martín is one of the city’s most popular and enjoyable spots. Some of Buenos Aires’ best architectural masterpieces line the square which was landscape-designed by the famous Charles Thays, who was also responsible for the Palermo parks and Botanical Gardens.

The square was also the setting for stories of forbidden love and revenge acted out between countries and families, and remnants of these stories are evidenced in the naming of the square, the memorials that inhabit it, and the buildings that frame it.

You will no doubt have noticed the English presence in the square. The Memorial Tower, or Torre de los Ingleses as it used to be known, stands proudly in front of Retiro station, in spite of the scrawls of graffiti at the base which claim, hopefully, that the ‘Malvinas son Argentinas’. But what you may not know is that the square was once called Plaza Britanica. In fact the English have a strong historical presence in this square – the station was also designed by a British architect and the railways which end up in Retiro were all famously built by the English.

Following a failed attempt by the Argentine army to invade the British-owned Falklands Islands in 1982, Anglo-Argentine relations became somewhat strained. The square was renamed Plaza Fuerza Aerea Argentina (Argentine Air Force square), the English Tower was to be known henceforth as the Torre Monumental, and a memorial to the fallen of the Malvinas was erected directly in front of the tower.

Photo courtesy of Eternautus

The English Tower was originally built as a monument to celebrate the centenary of the 1810 revolution and the contribution that the English had made to the new country. Monuments were similarly donated by Spain, Germany and Italy, amongst other countries. Designed by engineer Ambrose Poynter, it was then built by Hopkins and Gardom using solely materials from England. It was constructed in the Edwardian style and decorated at the base with the English rose, the Scottish thistle, the Welsh dragon, and the Irish shamrock.

In the early decades of the 20th century Buenos Aires was the capital of one of the wealthiest cities in the world. In 1910 mayor Torcuato de Alvear decided to commission an impressive network of parks, avenues and squares, many of which were influenced by the Beaux Arts style which had been prominent in Europe since the end of the last century.

The Beaux Arts style is based on ideas taught at the legendary École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. It is often described as being a neoclassical style, because it combines ancient Greek and Roman forms with Renaissance ideas.

Palacio Anchorena

Up the hill, in the far north-west of the square you will find the Palacio Anchorena – one of the city’s finest examples of the influence of the Beaux Arts school of architecture.

Photo courtesy of Eternautus

Mercedes Castellanos de Anchorena commissioned Alejandro Christophersen to design this palace, which was built between 1905 and 1909. During this period of wealth in Argentina, many architects were commissioned to build extravagant private residences, and this is one of the finest and most extravagant examples. Mercedes epitomised the image of a millionaire in Buenos Aires and so the phrase ‘more money than an Anchorena’ came about.

One of the most famous architects of his time in Argentina, Christophersen began his training at the Academia de Bellas Artes in Amberes, and completed it in the prestigious Atelier Pascal de la Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris.

The 120-room palace occupies a whole block and was home to Mercedes, three of her sons and their wives. Each son lived in one of the three residencies designed around the courtyard, which make up the palace.

As is typical of this style of architecture, the building is also split into three horizontally, each floor with a specific function: the ground floor is for the male servants, the first floor is the reception area where guests would be received, and the second level is the family’s living quarters with the female servants nearby to be on hand.

In 1936 the building was acquired by the state, renamed Palacio de San Martín, and now serves as the HQ for the Foreign Ministry.

The Kavanagh Building

That same year saw the construction of one of Buenos Aires’ most iconic buildings – the Kavanagh building. The design is a wonderful response to the tricky triangular site on a hill that the building occupies, and it gradually rises up 33 storeys as it reaches up towards the west of the square.

Photo by Guillermo Blanco

In the 1930s the approach to architecture in the city changes sharply from the classically influenced style to, what at the time was regarded as, Modernism or Art Deco.

Corina Kavanagh, one of Buenos Aires’ wealthiest women of her day, financed the construction of this building, and it was designed by Sanchez, Lagos & de la Torre and built in 1936. The Art Deco skyscraper is Buenos Aires’ most successful example of modernist architecture. When the building was completed it was the highest reinforced concrete structure in the world, and was South America’s tallest building for many years.

The Art Deco style thrived during the 1920s and 1930s and has many diverse influences – cubism (with zigzags and geometrical shapes), Ancient Egypt (following the recent discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922) and Aztec and Mayan art of Central America and México. Innovations of the age such as plastics, chrome and aluminium were utilised and the designs of these buildings visually embrace the modern machine age. Many iconic buildings in Europe and the US were designed at this time and used this style, such as the New York daily news building and Battersea Power Station in London.

Legend has it that the design of the Kavanagh building was also influenced by a tale of unrequited love. One of the daughters of Corina Kavanagh fell in love with the son of the Anchorena family. The Anchorenas disapproved on the basis that she was not from an aristocratic family. Corina therefore decided to execute architectural revenge – she had the building designed so as to block the Anchorena’s view of the church which they had commissioned, which is situated on the other side of the Kavanagh building site.

Appalled at the demolition of beautiful old buildings in their neighbourhood of Recoleta, several local residents came together to form ‘Basta de Demoler’ (Stop the Demolition). The group has taken on the government in a heroic David and Goliath struggle to protect the buildings valued by the community which are not protected by law, and are being pulled down in the name of progress.

Photo by Matthew Dillon

Many historical buildings in Buenos Aires are not ‘catalogued’ by the Ministry of Culture, which, until last month, was the only way to protect them against demolition. Developers have been buying small properties, pulling them down and erecting taller buildings which they sell off at a huge profit.

Earlier this month, neighbours, friends and artists who make up Basta de Demoler were celebrating their recent success; a new law has been approved, thanks in part to the hard work of the group, called the Law of Heritage Protection which it is hoped will go some way towards preserving the architectural heritage of the city. Finally architecture is on the political agenda of the city.

It all began with a letter to local newspaper, ‘El Fantasma’, in Recoleta. Expressing his rage at the demolition of historic buildings in the area, author of the letter, Santiago Pusso, invited like-minded readers to express their support by sending him an email. The response was such that a group was formed with a mission to fight for the conservation of the architectural heritage of Buenos Aires – something which the group believes is in danger of extinction. Pusso, a quietly spoken man who never raises his voice – an unlikely crusader – described what triggered him to take this first step: “At the beginning it was a feeling of powerlessness and indignation, and a need to do something urgently about these incessant demolitions.”

The reason for the demolition is of course money. Developers are buying charming, magnificently designed old petit hotels – bourgeois urban houses from 18th and 19th centuries – tearing them down, and often replacing them with, what Basta de Demoler believes to be, eye-sore monstrosities of glass which they will sell as apartment blocks or offices. Petit hotels are an easy target – usually there is only one owner to buy out, then the plot is yours to do as you wish, so long as the government planning doesn’t object, something which is a rare occurrence. Journalist and group member Sergio Kiernan describes the root of the problem being ‘the placid indifference of the government and an industry that doesn’t know how to make money without destroying and replacing with something bigger but worse’.

There have been cases in the past where a building has successfully resisted the bulldozers. Designed in 1912 by French architect Paul Pater, El Palacio Oritz Basulado (the French Embassy) is an exceptional example of the Beaux Arts style which influenced so many buildings of the late 19^th and early 20^th century in Buenos Aires. Towards the end of the 1970s this building was on the verge of being destroyed to make way for the Avenida 9 de Julio. However, refusal by the French government to submit the building for demolition, and protests by local preservationists, saved this architectural masterpiece from the fate which met many other buildings which stood in the way. The widest road in the world was forced to detour around the mansion.

Photo by Matthew Dillon

French Embassy

Unfortunately most buildings do not have the power of a foreign government to protect them, but luckily groups such as Basta de Demoler have sprung up across the city and have begun a campaign for buildings of patrimonial value to be protected by a robust law.

Over the past year the group has made its presence felt both physically and visually across the city. Keep a look out as you wander the streets of Recoleta, and you will see how the group has made its mark; graffiti on boarded up buildings condemned to demolition spell out the group’s name and mission.

After half a year of campaigning hard, Basta de Demoler found sympathetic ears in the city government and had made contact with other groups fighting for similar causes around the city. Some members of Basta de Demoler believed in the cause, but were pessimistic that anything good would come out of it. Battles were being fought and lost, however everything would change with the campaign to save Montevideo 1250.

After a long struggle, the group finally triumphed with the successful court appeal against the demolition of the Bemberg palacio at Montevideo 1250, to make room for the construction of a tower of glass. The original building was designed by architectural studio Acevedo, Becú y Moreno, and home to the Becú family. These architects were also responsible for many remarkable buildings throughout the city, such as the San Isidro racecourse and the Saudi Arabian Embassy.

The property is a wonderful example of transitional architecture – the different floors of the residency were used for different purposes but were all interconnected. One floor was usually to entertain guests, another for the sole use of the family, and a third floor for the servants.

The case sent a shockwave through the local government and the consequence has been the establishment of a landmark law of heritage protection which was passed on 18th November. The law states that:

·      for one year no demolition will be permitted of buildings that have either been awarded the municipal architectural prize, or that are listed as ‘edificios representativos’ – buildings which will go before a body which judges whether they are to be ‘catalogued’ and thereby protected by law from demolition.

·      all properties built before 31st December 1941 will be protected from demolition within a wide area of the city called the polígano, stretching from La Boca northwards to Núñez.

Photo by Matthew Dillon

Bemberg palacio at Montevideo 1250

·      for the first time residents are being given the opportunity to nominate buildings in this area to be classified as ‘edificios representativos’.

However developers will be given the opportunity to make a special appeal to demolish an edificio representativo to the Advisor on Heritage Matters (CAAP). They will decide the fate of that building within 30 days based on it is ‘patrimonial’ value.

Nevertheless the group are pleased with the outcome, and group co-founder, Laura Navarro, said, “this law, driven by Basta de Demoler, is a step in the right direction towards the protection of architecture, but it is not the solution. But it is important – before nobody even spoke about this subject. We need a more far-reaching way to protect the city from the indiscriminate demolitions.”

Although it is not clear what will happen after this one year, the issue has finally created a political climate which takes heritage protection seriously, and welcomes the views of its citizens. And with the national press coverage of this issue, the pressure is on the government to take affirmative action. As one of the group members commented: “Buenos Aires used to be known as the Paris of the South. In 15 years it will be the Las Vegas of the south.”