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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.

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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

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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,

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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

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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 Russian architecture considering both as a unique example of the cultural genesis based on the integration of equally proportioned compounds of Asia and Europe.

IV. Results and discussions The analysis of structural elements and types proves that the Latin American architecture features particular stages and branches of the evolution of several important types of Asian architecture. The type of pyramid featured in the Mayan and Aztec architecture in Mexico and Guatemala first appears in ancient Egypt and then gets further development in different pyramidal forms in Shumer, India, Cambodia and Indonesia progressing eastwards. The Mayan pyramids should be considered the next step in this sequence, although their location is too remote. This match between the Cambodians and Mayas is a mysterious thing in the historical science.

Fig. 3: Pyramids in Cambodia and Guatemala

An important derivation of the pyramid is a cone or pyramidal dome best known for the Russian tent-like churches of the 16th and early 17th century like the church of Ascension in Kolomenskoye. This kind of dome structure is almost unknown in Europe however it can be found among colonial building in Guatemala built in the 17th century. This is another mystery about the Guatemalan architecture since it's hard to assume any special connections between these two countries.

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Fig. 4: Church of Ascension in Kolomenskoye in Russia and Monastery of San Jeronimo in Antigua Guatemala

Exploring this branch of the typological evolution, we can trace the progression of this type from its origin in Egyptian pyramidal burial monuments to the Late Antiquity where it was transferred into a type of a mausoleum surmounted with a pyramid which later on was adopted by the Islamic architecture and evolved in a tented-roof mausoleum type widely spread in Central Asia and then emerging in Russia. Talking about Guatemala, the most special thing about this country is the presence of very well preserved Mayan pyramids which gives some ground to assume the possibility of the parallel evolution of a pyramid type happening in Asia and in America independently.

Fig. 5: Altars in Brazilian churches compared to a Hindu shikhara

There are some else branches of the pyramid typology represented in Latin America. The Brazilian Baroque generated a type of a pyramid-like altar composition embedded in a retablo evidently derived directly from Asia. This reminds very much a type of shikhara common for Hindu temples as well as a type of Chinese pagoda. This is a unique solution for the Christian altar. The patterns used for the plans and facades in many cases are just taken from the European Medieval and Renaissance architecture, however, there are important exceptions. The most remarkable are the centralized churches that are quite rare in Europe but can be found in Mexico. The old Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City has a rectangular plan with four bell towers at each corner and a dome in

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Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 the middle. This composition reminds the type of mosque common for India and Pakistan, as well as the type of Russian five domed churches. Another church in Mexico City called Templo del Pocito has a tripartite centralized plan unprecedented in Europe but well known in the Russian Naryshkin Baroque.

Fig. 6: Basilica of Our Lady of Guadelupe in Mexico and Badshahi Mosque in Pakistan

Fig. 7: Templo del Pocito in Mexico and Church of the Holy Trinity in Moscow as examples of a tripartite scheme

The Brazilian Baroque features the plan and facade schemes very distinct from the European patterns. The closest analogs can be found in Indonesia, particularly, Bali. The motives of Balinese architecture are evident in multiple churches built in a style of Mineiro Baroque generated in Brazil in the 18th century. The portals of those churches are framed with exquisite sculptural ornament corresponding to the decoration of the doorways in Balinese Hindu temples. That's not just a coincidence since the Portuguese had colonies in Indonesia.

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Fig. 8: Church oof San Francisco in Oru Preto and temple in Bali

Talking about architectural details, there can be found elements common for the European Baroque like rocailles, volutes, solomonic columns and split pediments, however, the prevailing motives of Islamic and Hindu art exceed the boundaries of the orient-based Spanish and Portuguese styles of Mudejar, Manuelino and Plateresco.

Fig. 9: Church of Santisima Trinidad in Mexico and Bugga Ramalingeswara temple in India

The problem of style definition is evident in case of the school of Talavera pottery in South Mexico famous for its architectural ceramics. According to May Herz (2009) it developed the techniques adopted from the Moorish and Mudejar architecture. Jose Luis Solana brings up the documents finding the first Talavera potters coming from Spain. However, the usage of ceramic polychromy on the facades has no analogy in Europe and the technology of facing the domes with ceramic glazed tiles is, obviously, Iranian.

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Fig.10: Domes with tiles in Puebla, Mexico and Shiraz, Iran

Fig. 11: Church in Acatepec and Krutitsy Metoсhion in Moscow

In the middle ages the Iranians gained supremacy in architectural ceramics and, evidently, induced the development of this kind of art in Russia in the 17th century. There is a remarkable correspondence between the usage of the glazed tiles on the facades of the churches in Russia and in Mexico.

Fig 12: Compana Church in Arequipa, Peru and Russian analogies

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Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 Another motif coming from Islamic architecture is the coffered wall. The way it was used in Mexico for the whole wall height has matches only in Russia and Pakistan. Peruvian Churrigueresque incorporated elements of the Mudejar style in a way that made it look more pronounced than in the rest of Latin America. Here the geometrical modules of the Mudejar allowed more space for the motives of traditional Inca art. Among the most typical elements there are biforas and poliforas with pendant arches. This motif originated in Iranian pendant vaults and then was brought to Spain with the Moorish architecture. It was introduced and became most diversified in Russia in 16th - 17th century.

Fig. 13: Pendant vault motives in Peruvian, Russian and Moorish architecture

One of the most distinct elements of the Mexican Baroque is an estipite which is a type of compound pilaster or column with a shape of inverted obelisk. This element is very special for Mexico and does not appear even in Peru but sometimes can be seen in Brazil, Spain and Russia. Its roots could be both in Antiquity where it somewhat matches the shape of a herma and in India where segmented columns were very common.

Fig. 14: Estipites in Mexican and Russian churches

An important element, supposedly, derived from the estipite is a compound pilaster that consists of a range of superimposed small balustres, tapered pyramids or

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Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 other similar elements. It first appears in Moscow stone tracery in the middle of the 17th century as a type of window frame and soon after that in Antigua Guatemala.

Fig. 15: Church of San Jose el Viejo in Antigua Guatemala and Church of Nativity in Putinki in Moscow

Peruvian architects did not use the Mexican estipite and instead elaborated their own version of an ornated compound column with accentuated lower third part. Those are often based on cantilevers making edicules for sculptures. The same types of column and edicule were widely spread in Russia. Mexico.

Fig. 16: Edicules on cantelivers in Lima and in Moscow

Correspondence between Brazilian and Russian Baroque can be found in the Brazilian type of retablo treated as a perspective portal.

Fig. 17: Altar in Rio de Janeiro and a portal in Russia

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Concerning the artworks in church interiors there is a remarkable correspondence between the Mexican retablos and Russian iconostasis as well as the Peruvian religious paintings and Russian icons of the Ushakov's school.

Fig. 18: Mexican retablo and Russian iconostasis

Fig. 19: Peruvian painting of Madonna and Russian icon

V. Conclusions The research proves that the revolutionary progress in development of classical architecture was achieved in Latin America due to the integration of various cultures overcoming the boundaries of styles and canons and still preserving the classical basis. The Latin American Baroque was created neither by Europeans nor by indigenous people but by the people of new race and culture of Eurasian nature and essence. The foundation of the Christian faith, aesthetic of the Antiquity and Renaissance humanism was completed with the experience of Islamic, Jewish and non-Abrahamic traditions as a result of both cultural and ethnic assimilation. The confluence of the opposite qualities of East and West projected on religion and philosophy resulted in the concept of the New World to be built in America corresponding to the concept of New Jerusalem to be built in Russia in the 17th century. Both cases represent the same Eurasian mode of syncretism where the opposite cultures are entirely assimilated on the same land which doesn't happen in the Mediterranean mode. The idea of the perfect architecture for perfect society elaborated by the Renaissance theorists and pursued in the experiments of Baroque artists implied incorporation of all the best achievements of the human civilization regardless of their origin because all the aspirations towards the perfection and universality have to

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Copyright reserved © J.Mech.Cont.& Math. Sci., Special Issue-1, March (2019) pp 568-580 converge as long as they advance as it was shown in the convergence of Latin America and Russia.

VI. Acknowledgement This research work was supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation (Agreement No. 02.A03.21.0008).

References

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