Customer Reviews

Building the New World: Modern Architecture in Latin America

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From the very beginning, Europe's modernist architects had a burning need to prostelitize about the benefits of their new architectural style. Their socialist message of modernity with its emphasis on form following function, simplicity and economy found an eager audience in Latin America during the first half of the Twentieth Century.

"Building the New World" follows the rise of modernist architecture in Mexico, Venezuela and Brazil with a special emphasis on the ideas of Le Corbusier. These countries became world leaders in the advancement of the modernist agenda. At the time, Latin America's modernist architecture was admired throughout the world. Today, Latin America's contribution to modern architecture is almost unknown outside of the region. Valerie Fraser does a good job of raising the question of what happened to this acclaim. Unfortunately, she does not do a decent job of answering the question which she posits at the beginning of her book.

In the end, "Building the New World" is nothing more than a cursory survey of Latin American modernist architecture. The illustrations are meager and the analysis is superficial. The only good thing that I recommend about this book is that it can purchased used for around five dollars. There is not alot written in English about this period of architectural history and anyone who is interested in the period will probably have to purchase this book. Purchase a used copy. In addition, avoid Carlos Brillembourg's "Latin American Architecture 1929-1960", an even less substantial work of architectural history.

I know a lot about architecture and urban planning, but very little about Latin America. So, I needed an introductory book on the topic of modernist architecture in Latin America. This book did a fine job.

The author writes about the introduction of modernist or International Style architecture to Mexico (Mexico City), Venezuela (Caracas), and Brazil (Rio and Brasilia). She shows how new regimes in those countries want to project an image of modernity coupled with a desire for progressive social projects to please the people. The International Style, born out of the Bauhaus and emphasizing both modern design forms and social activism, fit the bill. However, in the early 20th century, Latin America had neither the means nor the funds to build exactly in the European fashion (prefab, factory-made parts; lots of concrete and steel). Also, the stark white, rectilinear Bauhaus style wasn't right for Latin America. So, the International Style was adapted for local construction possibilities and local tastes, creating a Latin Americanization of the style.

The book is very readable for a layperson with little background in Latin American politics or modern architecture. The illustrations are not bad and can easily be supplemented by some searching on the internet. The only weak part of the book is the end, where she writes about the decline of the International Style in Latin America. But for its main subject, the book is interesting and to be recommended.