line of sight

lisboa: cinema europa

[Some material for this post originally published as “keeping it reel 1” on 10 Oct 2007. Older photos from the Lisbon City Archive.]

Since movies with sound grew in popularity during the 1930s & 1940s, it was only appropriate that cinema architecture became a spectacle in itself. Grand productions were meant to be seen in grand theaters. Some of the most stunning Art Deco & Rationalist/Modernist buildings I’ve seen around the world are remnants of that era, but unfortunately they are disappearing at an alarming rate.

Far off any tourist track in Lisboa, Campo do Ourique has wonderful neighborhood vibe… definitely one of the top three areas I’d choose to live in town. In June 2007, I went in search of the Cinema Europa because I’d read that it was in danger of demolition. Archival photos make me wish for a time machine:

What I found was quite different. It’s still standing, so that’s good. According to this article from January 2006, there were plans for restoration but obviously no one did much of anything. Redesigned in 1958 by architect Antero Ferreira, the 1930s building operated as a theater until 1981. Since then it was used as a tv studio… which probably means the interior is gone for good. Plans to demolish the cinema in 2004 were stopped by the city government.

At least the funky  ‘50s mural hasn’t been destroyed. “Europa” is written in Greek letters, & the relief shows part of her story… Zeus transformed into a bull to seduce this beautiful woman. Gentle & tame, Europa couldn’t resist hopping on Zeus’s back for a ride. Big mistake. He whisked Europa off to Crete to have his way with her:

Barricades are in place as of July 2010, photographed by the neighborhood organization SOS Cinema Europa. Luxury condominiums may take the place of this Lisbon landmark soon. My idea is to spread the word so perhaps non-Portuguese speakers can help save the building. The more info online, the better. Força vizinhos!

buenos aires: ciae building list / inventario

A list of all buildings which once belonged to the Compañía Italo-Argentina de Electricidad must exist somewhere in old company archives. But after being absorbed by SEGBA in 1979, it’s anyone’s guess as to where that list may be. And how many of those structures have been demolished since then? Reading & researching the CIAE’s crazy history over the past month, I also noticed that there is no online source dedicated to the CIAE. This must change.

Documenting is the first step in preserving the architectural heritage of Buenos Aires, so I’m asking anyone interested to help make this list complete. If you have a CIAE structure in your neighborhood not mentioned below, leave a comment with the exact address, barrio, any visible identification (like a substation number). Even better, send a photo to: ciae@wrighton.com.ar. Remember there were an estimated 200 substations built & there are only 32 on the list. Special help is requested from residents of Avellaneda, Lomas de Zamora & Quilmes. By compiling a list, residents may start to value this important piece of local history. Thanks for your help!

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Llamado a la solidaridad!! Seguramente existe un inventario de todos los edificios que pertecenían a la Compañía Italo-Argentina de Electricidad en algun archivo viejo de la empresa. Sin embargo puede ser poco probable que exista después de la compra por la junta militar en 1979. Y cuantas de esas estructuras demolieran desde entonces? Al leer e investigar la historia complicada de la Ítalo durante este último mes, me di cuenta que tampoco hay mucha información en internet. Hay que cambiar eso.

Documentar es el primer paso en preservar el patrimonio arquitectónico de Buenos Aires, por eso es que les pido a quienes les interesa ayudarme aportar informacion. Si hay algun edificio de la CIAE en tu barrio que no figura en el listado, por favor dejá un comentario con la dirección exacta, el barrio dónde se encuentra o alguna identificación que tiene (por ejemplo, el número de subestación). Aún mejor, mandá una foto a: ciae@wrighton.com.ar. Acuerdense que había unas 200 subestaciónes construidas y sólo hay 32 en el listado. Sobre todo pido ayuda de los vecinos de Avellaneda, Lomas de Zamora y Quilmes. Al compilar estos datos, estaremos valorando nuestra historia local mucho más. Les agradezco!

Largest structures

Usina Pedro de Mendoza, Avenida Pedro de Mendoza 501 • La Boca – construction 1914-16 – Arq. Juan Chiogna [pics + info]

Usina Doctor Carlos Givogri, Avenida T. Edison 2701, 6º Espigón • Puerto – 1928 (projected), 1930-33 (construction) – Arq. José Molinari [pics + info]

Substations

Subusina Melo (I), Pacheco de Melo 3031 • Recoleta (1914, later demolished) [pic]

Subusina Balcarce (II), Balcarce 547 • Monserrat (partially demolished in 1962) [pic]

Subusina Montevideo (III or V?), Montevideo 919 • Recoleta [pic]

Subusina Tres Sargentos (IV), Tres Sargentos 352 • Retiro (1915) [pic]

Subusina Moreno (III or V?), Moreno 1808 • Balvanera (95% demolished) [pic]

Subusina San Antonio (VI), San Antonio 1077 • Barracas (also marked Subestación #30) [pic]

Subusina Estados Unidos, Estados Unidos 2242 • San Cristóbal, (1931) [pic]

Subusina Tucumán, Tucumán 2453 • Balvanera, (1931) [pic]

Medium-size buildings with various usage

Benito Quinquela Martín 1366 (also listed as Azara 1240) • Barracas [pic]

Gascón 1046 • Palermo (original use unknown, currently Disco América) [pic]

Benito Pérez Galdós 37 • La Boca (1928) [pic]

Humahuaca 4515 • Almagro [no pic]

Small substations (by neighborhood)

Avenida de los Italianos y Emma de la Barra • Puerto Madero [no pic]

Avenida Calabria y Blvd Rosario Vera Peñaloza • Puerto Madero [no pic]

Margen Este del Dique I • Puerto Madero [no pic]

Costanera Sur • Puerto Madero (#50) [pic]

Costanera Sur • Puerto Madero (#89) [no pic]

Pedro de Mendoza 1515 • La Boca [no pic]

Palos 755 • La Boca [no pic]

Gualeguay 378 • La Boca [no pic]

Chenaut 1983 • Palermo [pic]

Parque 3 de Febrero • Palermo [no pic]

Avenida Figueroa Alcorta (3800 block) • Palermo [no pic]

Fray Justo María de Oro 2674 • Palermo [no pic]

Julián Álvarez 1714 • Palermo [pic]

Paraguay 4511 • Palermo [pic]

Gorostiaga 1660 • Palermo [pic]

Gorostiaga ¿#? • Palermo [pic]

Brandsen s/n (2600 megablock) • Barracas (#67) [pic]

Australia 1366 • Barracas [no pic]

Wenceslao Villafañe 1247 • Barracas (#23) [pic]

José Salmún Feijóo 760 • Barracas (#28) [no pic]

Avenida Pedro de Mendoza, Riachuelo • Barracas [pic]

Pedro Chutro 2510 • Parque Patricios (labeled ex-141) [pic]

Avenida San Juan 219 • San Telmo [no pic]

Brasil 537/539 • San Telmo (#48) [pic]

Asamblea 1468 • Parque Chacabuco [no pic]

Federico Lacroze 3574 • Chacarita [no pic]

Hipólito Yrigoyen 2925 • Balvanera [no pic]

Agrelo 3435 • Almagro (#59) [pic]

San José 1580 • Constitución (#45) [no pic]

Yerbal 1731 • Flores [no pic]

Venancio Flores 3693 • Floresta [no pic]

Iberlucea Del Valle 4283 • Remedios de Escalada [pic]

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CIAE series: Electricity timeline • Precedent & foundation • Swiss holding companies • Architecture 1 2 3 4 • Expansion • Scandal • Fade to black • Building list • Bibliography

buenos aires: ciae architecture 4

The smallest scale CIAE structures designed by Juan Chiogna are nothing more than decorative boxes. Transformer substations were needed to distribute electricity throughout the city… in order to overcome cable resistance, transformers are used to ramp up the voltage before sending it to substations where it is then converted back to regular voltage for local consumption.

As mentioned previously, the CIAE did not provide electricity for trolleys (the largest consumers in the early 20^th century prior to massive industrialization in the 1940s) so substations could be small & located in the neighborhoods they served. The majority are wedged in between residential lots silently disintegrating while people walk by unaware of their existence. Usually on the order of 4 x 6 m, they are frequently abused by their neighbors… painted over, chipped into, or used for graffiti:

Interesting although fairly repetitive examples are free-standing substations found along the city’s edge with the waterfront, either along the Río de la Plata (Palermo, Puerto Madero) or the Riachuelo (La Boca, Barracas):

If an attendant was needed, living quarters were built on the premises like at Julián Alvarez & Paraguay (photos below). These are larger than the 4×6 box & a bit more decorative but not on the same scale as the subusinas. An estimated 200 substations dot Buenos Aires & its southern suburbs although no complete list of remaining structures currently exists:

A company report map published in 1931 shows an extensive network throughout the city branching from major generators. The problem with the map is that it is more decorative than informative… Buenos Aires is tilted at an odd angle & exact substation locations are impossible to determine. Surely a list exists in some company archive. In the meantime, they remain to be discovered by anyone walking around Buenos Aires:

Two noteworthy substations which are more decorative than most are located in Palermo & have mini-towers:  Chenaut 1983 & Gorostiaga 1660. Unfortunately the first location has a kiosk blocking the view, & the stained glass in the second location is damaged. But both are unique creations by Chiogna:

Romanesque Revival remained popular in Buenos Aires through the 1930’s, mainly seen in churches like Alejandro Christophersen’s Basílica Santuario Santa Rosa de Lima (Avenida Belgrano 2208) & J.C. Massa’s Parroquia Tránsito de la Virgen (Perón 3333). Even the central post office as far away as the city of Tucumán followed the trend. Juan Chiogna was not responsible for CIAE architecture during the company’s expansion in the 1930′s. In fact, no attempt was made to maintain the original style, but that’s jumping ahead…

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CIAE series: Electricity timeline • Precedent & foundation • Swiss holding companies • Architecture 1 2 3 4 • Expansion • Scandal • Fade to black • Building list • Bibliography

buenos aires: ciae architecture 3

In 1915, the largest generator complex—Pedro de Mendoza—opened in the barrio of La Boca. But the CIAE began offering service the previous year from a facility in Recoleta. That building belongs to the next set of structures in terms of size:  6 subusinas which housed secondary generators named for the streets on which they are/were located. Besides generating electricity, customer service centers were located in three of the five buildings, marked below with an asterisk.

The Pacheco de Melo subusina #1 was located where an Edenor office now sits today. Nothing remains except for an often-published, old photograph. Unknown date of demolition:

The Balcarce subusina #2 * was partially demolished in 1962, & only the customer service center portion remains standing… currently a substation for Edesur:

Subusina Tres Sargentos #4 * still functions as such. Dwarfed by surrounding buildings & their shadows, this building is notoriously difficult to photograph:

The Montevideo subusina * (either #3 or #5) has found new life as a holocaust museum… on loan for 99 years from the city government. Due to two bombings against the Jewish community in the 1990s, photography of this building is generally prohibited. But early Sunday morning is a good time to avoid the police patrol. You didn’t hear it from me though… :

Apparently no photographic record exists of the Moreno installation (either #3 or #5)… one small portion of the building remains standing, barely visible behind a local kiosk. The brickwork & coats-of-arms are a dead giveaway that this once belonged to the CIAE:

Subusina San Antonio #6 still bears Chiogna’s signature. This building might have led a double-life because it is also marked as Subestación #30. Since it is not as grand or as decorative as the previous subusinas described, this may have been originally built as a transformer substation then enlarged to become a secondary generator during a period of expanding service:

While not one of the original secondary generators (at least as mentioned by any of my sources… maybe a warehouse or storage facility??), another building in Barracas fits the same size category. Located at the intersection of Azara & Quinquela Martín, the corner tower is particularly dramatic:

But what makes this grand but otherwise simple building unique is its decoration–a crowned snake. He’s crumbling away so someone needs to take molds urgently before all traces disappear. While the example here is not eating a small child, without doubt the inspiration is the biscione on the Sforza family coat-of-arms… also found on the Alfa Romeo logo. The biscione is not found on any other CIAE building:

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CIAE series: Electricity timeline • Precedent & foundation • Swiss holding companies • Architecture 1 2 3 4 • Expansion • Scandal • Fade to black • Building list • Bibliography

buenos aires: ciae architecture 2

The CIAE ensured that Juan Chiogna’s Romanesque Revival spread throughout Buenos Aires plus its southern suburbs & remains a distinct feature of the urban area. Buildings appeared on three scales & larger structures had more decorative elements. The largest of Chiogna’s works was the first generator complex in La Boca, the Usina Pedro de Mendoza. Initially a 3-story rectangular structure in 1915, it occupied approximately one-quarter of the city block with the street façade decorated by a tower on one end & an ochava office entrance on the other:

One year later a machine room was added to the right of the original tower, so the complex took an “L” form.  This addition can be seen under restoration behind former mayor Jorge Telerman (second from right). Besides gaining an extra structure, the complex had a more decorative service entrance:

Expansion continued by adding a second tower (with a terracotta tile rooftop), an interior vehicle path to connect both service entrances & one more building on the opposite side of the street:

In 1926 the complex was further enlarged along Caffarena Street, maintaining Chiogna’s original style. This final expansion added more space, a clock tower & a “patio of honor.” The flagship of the CIAE is even more impressive considering that at this point it became a complete complex occupying half of the city block:

In 1928 a smaller substation was built across the street by an unknown architect, but whoever designed the space for 5 extra generators & cable storage followed Chiogna’s lead. Maybe a little excessive on the decoration compared to the original complex, but it adds a bit of fantasy. Apologies for the horrible photo… bad light, no time to return:

Saved from demolition when the Buenos Aires-La Plata highway was built next to it, the city government began to show interest in the building in the year 2000. Destined to become the Usina de la Música, basic clean-up & restoration took place from 2001 to 2005. The 2006 purchase price was $5.6 million pesos (U$S 1.8 million at the time). Major works began in 2007 under the Telerman administration with an estimated budget of 55 million pesos (currently U$S 14 million), but it’s anyone’s guess as to when the National Symphony & the Buenos Aires Philharmonic will be able to move in. Supposedly over 70% of the work is completed & sometime this year it will open to the public. The largest auditorium will have 1,600 seats, another will have 500 & the rehearsal hall will hold 250… a fantastic set of photos on Flickr shows what city officials have gotten themselves into:

While the city waits for the complete space to open, the second tower houses one of the locations for the Fundación Julio Bocca. The building has also been used for the occasional publicity shot:

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CIAE series: Electricity timeline • Precedent & foundation • Swiss holding companies • Architecture 1 2 3 4 • Expansion • Scandal • Fade to black • Building list • Bibliography

buenos aires: ciae architecture 1

With financial needs met, a concession from Buenos Aires granted & service scheduled to begin in 1914, Carosio hired Juan Chiogna to build fantastic covers for CIAE generators & substations. Reminding passersby of Medieval Italy, these eye-catching structures only served as decorative shells to house large machinery, spare equipment & cables. Local architects term the style “Lombardy Romanesque” likely due to an early reference found in La Nacion newspaper in 1916:

“[Chiogna] introduced a new twist with true artistic style to the monotonous industrial architecture in our midst. Disdaining the warehouse, abandoning the naked & heavy profiles of common factories, he housed industrial life in buildings whose severity was harmonized with stylish beauty. He chose Lombardy style, [like] the Milan castle of the Sforza family, but modernized. Clearly the effort of adapting it to industrial architecture was a personal achievement of Chiogna & deserving of praise.”

Instead of Lombardy Romanesque, a more correct categorization would be Romanesque Revival. Similar architecture of the same period can be found throughout northern Italy, especially in the neighboring regions of the Veneto & Piedmont. The beginning of the 20^th century witnessed several architectural movements, from Art Nouveau to numerous revival styles & CIAE buildings fall within that general revival category.

Unfortunately no biographical information can be found about Chiogna; incredibly enough, no one seems to care about where he was born, where he studied, if he returned to Italy or stayed in Argentina, or where he died. His style is strikingly similar to that of Cecilio Arpesani, responsible for the 1906 Palazzo Gonzaga di Vescovado in Milan  [first photo below]. Original Romanesque-era inspirations for Chiogna were many:  the Sforza Castle in Milan as previously mentioned, the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, the Palazzo Sforza Colleoni in the Veneto & the entrance towers of the Arsanale in Venice [photos below, each linked to its source].

Chiogna used a set of standardized elements, adding or subtracting parts based on the building’s function & size… the versatility of Chiogna’s mix-and-match set is genius, especially because his structures are not as repetitive as they could have been. Combinations were based on the following:

• Brickwork façade with a cement base. Stone was used occasionally as decoration just above the base:





• Company name highly visible, either engraved in concrete or with affixed letters. Two main fonts were used–a simple all-caps serif or a fanciful, curly serif:




• Repetitive, round arches occasionally paired with small columns:



• Coats-of-arms either with or without the company logo:



• Nebule molding beneath the parapet:



• Crenellations:



• Towers which grow larger on the top, sometimes with a clock or sundial:



• Wrought iron used for grillwork, gates & decorative lamps:



• Special tilework with the company logo in dark purple:

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CIAE series: Electricity timeline • Precedent & foundation • Swiss holding companies • Architecture 1 2 3 4 • Expansion • Scandal • Fade to black • Building list • Bibliography

found: palacio costaguta, buenos aires

found: edificio capitol, madrid

Many more excellent photographs from the Spanish capital’s past at Imágenes del Viejo Madrid.

buenos aires: then & now, ex-bodegas giol

Situated along the train tracks in Palermo, restoration & reuse of the former warehouse of the Giol winery is advancing rapidly. Photos above are from 2005 & 2010, respectively.

The winery’s website describes their history:  Italians Juan Giol, Bautista Gargantini & Pascual Toso arrived together in Mendoza in the 1880s  & established successful vineyards. The fourth generation, now intermarried, continues the family tradition under the San Polo label. Pascual Toso has become recognized winery in its own right. No info is available online about when this particular warehouse was built, but I’d guess the 1930s or 1940s based on the architectural style… textbook Racionalismo.

In October 2009, President Cristina Kirchner announced plans to convert the abandoned building into the new Ministry of Science, Technology, & Product Innovation (currently at Avenida Córdoba & Esmeralda). Apart from the ministry itself, the enormous 18,000 square meter space will also house the organizations CONICET & AGENCIA, a new museum, & biotech & physics labs.

Monthly progress reports can be found on the Ministry’s website. Financed by a loan of $100 million pesos from the Inter-American Development Bank, the building should be inaugurated by the end of 2012. The surrounding area—already with serious traffic problems—will need to be reorganized. Cooperation between the national & city governments probably will not happen anytime soon, but the ambitious project seems to be off to a good start.

found: estadio tomás adolfo ducó, buenos aires