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Paper Formatting and Preparation Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 Formation of Latin American Baroque Architecture *1Andrey Ivin, 2Salem Khalabi, 3 Vasiliy Shuvalov, 4Olga Plotnikova Department of Architecture & Civil Engineering, RUDN University, Moscow, Russia * Corresponding Author: [email protected] https://doi.org/10.26782/jmcms.2019.03.00057 Abstract This work explores the ways that brought the development of Latin American architecture to the highest extent of morphologic complexity. Understanding the evolution of forms and fusion of different traditions we can research the possibility of the progress of classical forms and ways of further possible development of the architecture and culture overall. An objective of this work is to prove that the formation of the Latin American Baroque was not an accidental combination of influences but a conscious elaboration of a universal architectural concept enabling convergence of East and West and confluence of the most various cultures in one unity. The main emphasis is put on the correspondence between the processes happening in Latin American and in Russia featuring the Eurasianist principles of cultural formation in both cases. The similar circumstances that induced the generation of progressive architecture are investigated in order to figure out the universal formation principles applicable to any kind of architectural innovation. Keywords : Baroque architecture, Latin America, Churrigueresque, Mineiro Baroque I. Introduction The Latin American architecture of the 16th-18th centuries is usually referred to as Spanish and Portuguese colonial or Virreinal architecture pertaining to the Viceroyalties of New Spain (Mexico), Peru and Brazil. The style developed in Peru and Mexico under the Spanish rule is called Churrigueresque and is also known as Ultrabaroque for its extreme complexity. The Brazilian architects shared the same tendency but created their own style called Mineiro Baroque. 568 Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 Fig. 1: Mexican and Brazilian 18th century Baroque churches The Spanish Baroque and Renaissance culture has already been widely recognized as a unique case of synretism of East and West established during the Arabic conquest of Spain when Muslim, Christian and Jewish traditions merged in one high culture based on the classical canons of the Antiquity. Introduced in the American colonies this amalgamation was completed with a huge impact of the indigenous cultures and non-Abrahamic religious traditions making an unprecedented case of convergence of the most diverse branches of the human civilization. As we know, the indigenous cultures of pre-colonial America developed their own architecture long before the Europeans arrived. The empires of Inca and Aztec gave a base for the cultures of Peru and Mexico. Brazil was not based on preexisting civilizations but integrated the spirit of indigenous tribes and people of African descent. In both cases the cultural fusion produced similar effect. Fig. 2: Sagrario Metropolitano in Mexico Cit The ancestors of American Indians came from Asia and developed an Asian-like architectural style. Historians still argue whether there existed any trans-Pacific connections or it was a coincidence. The convergence of America and Asia happens 569 Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 again in the epoch of Baroque when the new ways of orient influence appear in the colonial art. The Spanish derived the Mudejar style from the Mozarabic art. The Portuguese founded colonies all over the Eastern hemisphere and introduced the influence of India in the Manuelino style contributing to the formation of the style of Plateresco in Spain. The Latin American Baroque advanced much further so that many Asian motives emerged there without any precedent in Portugal or Spain. There is still no agreement between the scholars whether the European colonists were consciously emulating Asian architecture in America or that happened due to the input of the Asian mind of local artists. So, the significance of the Latin American Baroque as a universal culture even exceeds the Spanish and Portuguese precedents but still remains not that well-known and not that thoroughly explored. This work suggests the ways to discuss the Latin American baroque in terms of its aesthetic universality and advancement in the evolution of classical forms. II. Analysis of the Issues Concerning the origin of the orient aspects of Latin American art many historians ascribe it to the impact of the indigenous cultures. The Mexican historian Jose Moreno Villa in his work “Lo mexicano en las artes plasticas” (1949) first gives a definition of the Tequitqui style as a style of late Aztec maintained in early colonial period. In the recent publication by Sofia Irene Velarde Cruz (2014) the Tequitqui style is described as the predominant style of the Indian reductions maintained by local artisans under the supervision of the Catholic missioners. Then it follows that in many cases the Spanish colonial art was just an adaptation of the Tequitqui to the general schemes of the Spanish Baroque. This explains the divergence between Mexican and Spanish art but gives no answer on: Origin of the Asian influence in the indigenous American cultures; Coincidence of some elements and principles of Latin American Baroque with Asian cultures, particularly, India, Iran, Cambodia and Russia. Another opinion is that the style of Latin American architecture was determined by the colonists. Some orient motives could have come from the Spanish architecture of Mudejar and Plateresco as well as the Portuguese Manuelino. John F. Moffitt (2004) researched the Islamic design module in Latin America exploring the parallels between the Tequitqui and Mudejar. Richard Rubinstein (2003) proves that Mozarabic heritage was crucial for the formation of the Spanish Renaissance and considers pre-Baroque Spain as a half-Asian culture. However, the theory of the Asian elements brought by the colonists lacks the explanation of the following problems: Advanced development of orient motives not corresponding to the tendencies in the mainland of Spain and Portugal; Emergence of Islamic architectural elements rare in the Mudejar but typical for the Middle East, 570 Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 Pursuit of the Mudejar principles in Latin America after in got out of fashion in Spain; Differences between Mexican, Peruvian and Brazilian cultures featuring inclination towards the Hindu style in Mexico, the Middle Eastern motives in Peru and Indonesian elements in Brazil. The uncertainties about the sources of influence and impetus for the development in a particular direction affect the style definition. The Churrigueresque is named after the Spanish sculptor Jose Churriguera implying its Spanish origin. According to Joseph Armstrong Baird (1962) it was established in Mexico by the Spanish architects Geronimo Balbas and Lorenzo Rodriguez. However, ascription of the Mexican Churrigueresque to Spanish descent encounters the following issues : The style was scarcely introduced in Spain but became most widely spread, elaborated and diversified in Mexico and Peru; The Spanish Churrigueresque was represented mostly in retablos and interior design but almost never in the building exterior like in Latin America; Many crucial elements of the style first appear in Mexico and Peru rather than in Spain; The Mexican Churrigueresque featured Hindu motives absent in the Spanish architecture of the time. Obviously, the strong Asian influence in colonial art could not be the matter of geographical proximity to Asia since Central and Southern America is closer to Europe. And it is not the matter of economic connections either, otherwise, we would see this kind of architecture in other European colonies built in Asia. III. Methods of the research The architecture of Latin America is mostly anonymous, so we cannot rely much on documented evidences of cultural exchange that might have brought that diverse influences. The method suggested for this research is based on studies of numerous examples of Baroque churches and civic building of the Viceroyalties and their comparison with the possible precedents found all over the world. Analysis of the compositional patterns and details allows to figure out the evolution of the architectural elements and inscribe it in the sequence of the commonly known progression of changes in historical architecture so that it might explain the convergence of the cultures without straight connections. The analysis includes: Typology of the structural elements; Compositional schemes of the buildings; Architectural details; Artworks. The second part of the research deals with the aspects of ethnogenesis and its correlations with the formation of culture referring to the well known examples of the first advanced civilizations appearing in the East Mediterranean area on the edges of the different continents coming close to each other where Europe and Asia as the two 571 Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 different poles of the human mind gave birth to the classical culture. This can also be true for the Pre-Columbian America as an extension of Asia facing the European colonization. Finally, an important part of the research deals with the parallels between Latin American and
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