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Bienal Internacional de Arquitectura

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Talks

Arantzazu: architecture, myth and politics

Almost certainly, before the construction of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao the contemporary building most often mentioned by historians of architecture and art in the Basque Country was the basilica perched on a crag over an abyss surrounded by peaks in the municipality of Oñati. Set in a magical place surrounded by legends, the building suffers from a lack of clear knowledge about the circumstances in which it was constructed. If one goes into detail the legends dissolve to reveal people, their efforts and limitations, their hopes and their disappointments.

The talk goes into the origins of the project and the reasons for which the winning design in the competition organised by the Franciscans of Arantzazu underwent so many changes while the work was being carried out, to the point where it was almost a different building. It will also review the different meanings (religious, political, cultural and tourist) of the modern church over the nearly seven decades of its existence.

Organizer: COAVN Gipuzkoa



The Programme is being prepared