Who was Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, Mexico’s genius modernist?

What bash the logo of the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games, the National Museum of Anthropology and History and the Azteca Stadium person successful common? They were each (at slightest partly) designed by Mexican designer Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, the antheral liable for modernizing Mexico.

Originally from Mexico City, Vázquez designed galore of Mexico’s astir iconic Modernist monuments during the 1960s and 1970s. His power successful modern Mexico went beyond his relation arsenic an designer — helium besides served arsenic an municipality planner and authorities official, playing a important portion successful the country’s modulation toward modernity.

Pedro Ramírez Vasquéz, the antheral down galore of Mexico’s astir defining megaprojects. (INAH)

“To deliberation of him arsenic idiosyncratic who designed buildings is not to instrumentality relationship of each the roles helium played,” Luis  Castañeda, a prof of creation past astatine Syracuse University, told the  New York Times successful a 2012 interview. “He wasn’t the 1 constructing the models oregon sketching the drawings; helium was the 1 securing the committee from the president.”

Who was Pedro Ramírez Vázquez? 

Ramírez was calved connected April 16, 1919, successful the dying months of the Mexican Revolution. After graduating from architecture astatine the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) successful 1943, helium became a prof of municipality plan and readying astatine the Faculty of Architecture. 

When Ramírez’s mentor, the person and intelligence Jaime Torres Bodet became Minister of Education, Ramírez was selected to assistance make a low-cost, prefabricated prototype for classrooms and teacher housing. This prototype was utilized for decades astatine thousands of agrarian schoolhouse sites.

A young Pedro Ramírez Vázquez (left) and Jaime Torres Bodet (right). (Pedro Ramírez Vázquez )

He past held assorted teaching and nationalist work positions passim Mexico and was  the laminitis and archetypal rector of the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM). Ramírez besides served arsenic Minister of Human Settlements and Public Works from 1976 to 1982 during the authorities of José López Portillo.

What did Pedro Ramírez Vázquez design? 

In 1962, Ramírez completed his masterpiece: the National Museum of Anthropology and History, commissioned by President Adolfo López Mateos. The depository is renowned for its ample h2o diagnostic successful the halfway of its esplanade, a suspended factual cover, and the lattices that power shades of airy into the interior facades of the rooms.

Mexico City’s Anthropology Museum was Ramírez’s magnum opus, and is 1 of the country’s astir recognizable monuments to modernism. (Evan Wise/Unsplash)

Over six decades, Ramírez built different notable landmarks similar the Legislative Palace of San Lázaro, the Basilica of Guadalupe — Mexico’s largest pilgrimage tract — and the nationalist office of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (which ruled Mexico from 1929 done 2000), and the Museum of the Templo Mayor, among others successful Mexico City. 

He besides designed the logo for Televisa, Mexico’s largest telecommunications corporation.

Outside of Mexico, helium designed the International Olympic Committee Headquarters gathering successful Lausanne, Switzerland, Mexican pavilions astatine respective World’s Fairs, the Nubian Museum successful Egypt and the Chapel of Our Lady of Guadalupe wrong St. Peter’s Basilica successful the Vatican City, among others.  

His astir idiosyncratic task would beryllium his ain location and studio, built successful 1958 successful the affluent Mexico City vicinity of El Pedregal. Located southbound of Mexico City, the vicinity sits implicit a solidified lava tract and was developed by renowned designer Luis Barragán. It remains 1 of the capital’s astir desirable areas to this day.

Ramírez’s location successful El Pedregal. (World of Interiors)

With elemental geometric buildings featuring level roofs and earthy materials, El Pedregal seemed similar a earthy spot for Ramírez to physique his residence. On 1 broadside of the spot helium built his studio, presently filled with books, pre-Columbian figures, and a yarn coating of his 1968 Olympic logo. On the different broadside helium built his house, wherever helium died connected his 94th birthday, connected April 16, 2013.

His information arsenic the caput of Mexico’s Olympic Committee 

Ramírez led the instauration of the largest and astir effectual graphic and advertizing run ever developed successful Mexico during his clip arsenic caput of the organizing committee of the 1968 Olympic Games successful Mexico City. 

“We had to amusement that we had a graphic connection of modern connection and Mexican taste expression,” he said successful an interrogation with Código Magazine successful 2008. “We knew that connection was not enough. We had to amusement [Mexico’s representation arsenic a modern country] with facts.”

However, contempt the tremendous occurrence of the plan campaign, Ramirez’s representation was marred aft helium defended Mexico’s authorities implicit the events of the Tlatelolco pupil massacre of 1968, which helium claimed had been exaggerated by the press.

Reagardless of ungraded successful his quality state though, Ramírez continued to person assorted large accolades, specified arsenic the National Art Prize successful Mexico (1973) and the Olimpiat Prize, awarded by the International Olympic Committee successful Atlanta (1996), and the Life and Work Award by Obras Cemex (2003).

He was besides named Doctor Honoris Causa by respective universities including the UNAM.