INTRODUCTION

CARACAS: A CROSSHATCHED CITY

Fig. B3 - Childhood image of myself in Caracas, Sara Harris, 2000

Fig. A3 - Childhood image of myself in Caracas, Sara Harris, 2000

Fig. C3 - Childhood image of myself and my Grandma in Caracas, Sara Harris,Fig. D3 - Childhood image of myself in Caracas, Sara Harris, 2000

2000

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INTRODUCTION

2. AN INTRODUCTION

Values, Caracas, and Magical Realism

This dissertation will serve as a critical analysis of the current urban condition of the city of Caracas, Venezuela, which will then go on to discuss what can be learned from the architectural successes and failures of the city. The intention is not political, though politics is so inherently imbued within the fabric of the city that it would be impossible not to comment on it. The city has come to a tipping point following extreme rates of hyperinflation and impoverished living conditions in the dense urban landscape. The city of Caracas is on the verge of a new revolution, one that will enable it to change and cause a shift in the temporal environment.

In order to conduct my research, I will be investigating facts from the current political situation in Venezuela, using a variety of different sources from both the English and Spanish speaking worlds. Articles, lectures, videos, exhibitions, books, and interviews are all rich sources of information

that will allow me to take a lateral look and deeply investigate the issues at hand.

The subject came from a personal vested interest in the city of Caracas, with direct family members originating from there, feeding me a constant stream of information on the state of the country. Through my dissertation I hope to gain a deeper understanding of what is currently happening in Venezuela. I will explore the responses that the people have had to the adverse conditions that are presented to them, and how this may inform my practice as an architect.

I am interested in the rebellious attitude shown by the people of Caracas, in spite or perhaps because of, the geopolitical climate within the country. Projects and studies undertaken by architecture practice Urban Think Tank exemplify this attitude and are a relevant pattern of a vernacular that are, as UTT director, Alfredo Brillembourg states in a lecture

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CARACAS: A CROSSHATCHED CITY

BOLIVARIAN REVOLUTION

LACK OF MEDICINE

RESTRICTIONS ON FREEDOMIMMOBILISATION

HUNGER

HYPERINFLATION

CORRUPTION

INSUFFICIENT HOUSING, EDUCATION, INFRASTRUCTURE

TIPPING POINT

POLITICAL UNREST

METAMORPHOSISEXTERNAL INTERVENTION

REVOLUTION

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Fig. E3 - Diagram explaining the tipping point in Caracas, Venezuela, by the author, Nathalie Harris

INTRODUCTION

at the AA in 2012 “a series of urban interventions”, and that “the interesting thing is to try things out, see how they transform and there will be consequences and effects that will stimulate other effects and multiplicities.” (Brillembourg, A, AA, 2012)

I will also bring in theories from magical realism, the rebellious art genre that saw artists like Otto Dix take the stubborn mentality to create art despite hardships that could have prevented their creation. The genre of magical realism is born of these hardships, and attempts to create worlds where magic and possibility simply is, and accepted for what it is. Magical realism resides in the liminal space between what is real and what is surreal, providing a platform for the surreal to penetrate the real and allows space for the artist to contemplate many different possibilities. It erases boundaries in life that otherwise restrict, such as life and death, spirit and matter, and boundaries between communities. (Zamora, L, 1995)

Magical realism is an attitude towards life, and provides a platform for architecture to invent new worlds that allow the possibility of freedom. This genre was particularly prevalent in Latin America, where magical realism was propelled into the genre that it has become. In a state that is rife with corruption and dictatorship, the people of Venezuela, and Latin America should seek to better themselves and the current situation that they exist within by creating, not abandoning. Immigration is on the lips of many politicians today, and is one that is particularly present in Latin America, as people attempt to leave in order to find a better situation. However if there is no hope of improvement, what then?

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