Modern Architecture of Quito: Global, Local, and the In-Between

(Hardback)

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The first in-depth study of the modern architectural history of Quito, Ecuador. Situated at the crossroads of foreign influence and local vernacular, Quito with its world-famous yet understudied architecture stands as a testament to architectural in-betweenness, and this book interweaves history and theory to understand how near and far influences have shaped its unique architectural character. Six central case studies present diverse and unexpected episodes in Quitos architectural history ranging from modernist housing projects to an account of Quitos singular appropriation of the motel typology together showing how the fluxes of the global and the local have created an architecture marked by diversity and interrelation. Alongside the case studies, this anthology introduces a theoretical framework, elaborating notions of the in-between and the local, concepts which are increasingly referenced in architecture, and which have many variations and embodiments. This book not only adds to the evolution of these concepts, it shows them to be invaluable instruments in the study of the architectures of Latin America and of the Global South more broadly. With contributions from a new generation of Ecuadorian architecture scholars, Modern Architecture of Quito is a must-read for students and researchers studying how architectural modernism developed in Latin America.

Author Bio

Christian Parreno is Assistant Professor of History and Theory of Architecture at San Francisco University of Quito, Ecuador. He is the author of Boredom, Architecture, and Spatial Experience (Bloomsbury, 2021).