Art Nouveau in Buenos Aires

One of the most important Art Nouveau architects in Buenos Aires at the turn of the 20th Century was Julian Garcia Nuñez. His distintive architecture broke away from the traditional academic style and favored the use of different textures and colors, iron work, geometric forms, patterns and lines that reflect flowers and nature.

He built most of his work between 1906 and 1920 and while some of his buildings no longer stand, many can still be found around the place. Because Art Nouveau was a radical new style of architecture it was not adopted by the government, and the buildings were not constructed in the very centre of the city. As the city of Buenos Aires expanded and now approx. 100 years on, many Art Nouveau buildings are hidden in the back streets of different neighbourhoods.

This first building I have included was completed in 1913 by Garcia Nuñez as a Casa de Rentas or apartment building and stands in a back street at Sáenz Peña 274 near the Plaza de Congreso.

 This last photo shows the architect's signature "J Garcia Arq. 1913" which he used to mark all of his buildings in the early part of his career.

Street Artist Antis

I found the artist that did the street art on the building in my post below, her name is Antis. She has a lot more art around the place in Buenos Aires, check out more on her website here! I hope I run into some more of her work now that I know her aesthetic. (photos from the artist's website).

Casa in Palermo

Some super cute street art to make this otherwise slightly scary-looking building a bit sweeter...

Teatro Regio

 

I pass this theatre every morning on the bus heading to work, in the barrio of Colegiales. It looks like such a lovely old theatre, I would love to see inside. It was built by a wealthy businessman who lived in the neighbourhood and wanted to bring more culture to the area. Inaugurated in 1929, it was inspired by Spanish Baroque architecture. 

Thirty Three Orientals

This street is near my apartment and when I see it I always wonder who came up with the name and why. In English it translates to thirty three oriental people...

UPDATE: thanks to a fellow Twitter-er who informed me of the reason behind the name!  As wikipedia tells me

"The Treinta y Tres Orientales (English: thirty-three orientals or thirty-three easterners) was a militant revolutionary group led by Juan Antonio Lavalleja against the Empire of Brazil. Their actions culminated in the foundation of modern Uruguay. They became famous by the name of the Treinta y Tres Orientales when, in 1825, they began an insurrection for the independence of Oriental Province, a historical territory encompassing modern Uruguay and part of modern Brazilian Rio Grande do Sul State, from Brazilian control."

What was life like before the internet and Wikipedia? I try to block it out.

Grand Old Caballito

There are some amazing old houses in certain parts of Caballito, a suburb right in the middle of Buenos Aires. Two thirds of the suburb is full of tall apartment buildings built from about the 1960s/70s onwards, but a couple of areas remain with these old beauties. These are just a couple examples of the grand old architecture that I love.

 

This amazing old house below is unoccupied ; the windows are cemented over to avoid squatters living there. On closer inspection the house is about four stories tall with a roof-top terrace as well. It must be so old and incredible inside, I wonder if it is full of old furniture, and who owns it. Such a shame that it is just sitting there with no one to bring it back to life. My dream Buenos Aires house!