Recuperar o desaparecer. Análisis de cuatro edificios modernos demolidos en el Centro Histórico de Quito entre los años 2013 y 2015 para determinar parámetros de evaluación que permitan decidir la permanencia de un edificio moderno dentro de cascos históricos

Abstract

In a country where there is no plan to preserve modern heritage, making the decision to overthrow a building can become trivial. The study "Recover or Disappear" addresses this issue by analyzing four modern buildings that were under the spotlight to be overthrown. The objective of the analysis is to determine evaluation parameters that allow to decide the permanence of a modern building within Historical Centers.

The analyzed buildings are the Dirección Provincial de Salud, Registro Civil, Instituto Nacional de la Niñez y la Familia and Edificio Amador; all located in the Historical Center of Quito and built in the mid-twentieth century with formal values of modern architecture. Due to its location in a colonial environment, some of these buildings received strong criticism from the moment of its construction; despite which, the last two stood out for their architectural quality.

The methodology used for the analysis of buildings starts with the study of their location and the way they are inserted in the urban layout. The analysis continues, on a smaller scale, with the review of the architectural program and the relationship that it has with the construction system: the structure, the enclosures, etc.

As a result, the study made it possible to detect the coherence of the form, that is, the correct relationship between the location, the program and the construction. This degree of coherence is the basis for knowing the modern architectural quality that these buildings had or have. As a conclusion, the study came up with the debate on the different paths that could be followed with similar cases where the preservation of modern heritage has to be decided: to recover or to disappear.