BÉTON BRUT DE LIMA
Concrete Brut or 'Beton Brut' in French, is the predominant material in Brutalist-style constructions found in most buildings worldwide. When used as an exposed material alongside angular geometric shapes in their designs, these buildings convey an impression of imposing monumentality, simplicity, rawness, and long-lasting durability. The term 'Béton Brut' was coined by the French architect Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, Le Corbusier, who is among the major figures in Brutalist architecture, along with Lina Bo Bardi, Paul Rudolph, Ernő Goldfinger, Moshe Safdie, among others, who left representative and significant works such as the Trellick Tower in London, the São Paulo Museum of Art in Brazil, the Supreme Court of Chandigarh, and Habitat 67 in Canada.
The Brutalist style emerged in the 1950s in the United Kingdom as a response to post-war reconstruction projects due to its low cost and simplicity in materiality. Governments sought a quick and economical way to rebuild European cities that were destroyed by the war. Over the years, this innovative architectural style spread throughout Europe and the former Soviet Union, adopted by many architects as it also began to symbolize modernity and avant-gardism for those times.
Brutalism arrived in Latin America in the mid-1960s, finding its footing in countries like Argentina with the National Library (1961) and the Bank of London (1966), Chile with the CEPAL Building (1966), and Guatemala with the Bank of Guatemala (1966). Symbolizing modernism and prosperity, this style began to spread across other Latin American countries over the next two decades, cementing this architectural style as a global movement.
In Peru, Brutalism made its initial appearances in Lima with the construction of the famous San Felipe residence (1964). This marked the emergence of the earliest buildings with designs incorporating exposed concrete, displaying resemblances to Le Corbusier's designs and British Brutalism. However, it wasn't until around 1970, with the construction of the Civic Center, that this style monumentally entered Lima's architecture, becoming predominant in government and various other-purpose buildings throughout the following decade.
After the consolidation of General Juan Velazco Alvarado's coup in 1968, the new revolutionary government found in the Brutalist style a way to reaffirm the ideology and authoritarian power of the new regime through its institutional buildings and public enterprises, such as the former Ministry of Fisheries (now the Ministry of Culture), the Central Reserve Bank, the Petroperú building, the Army General Headquarters (former Ministry of War), among others. During the dictatorship of Juan Velazco Alvarado, which lasted from 1968 to 1975, the government sought to create an image of national sovereignty, independence, and progress. Therefore, architecture became one of its primary means. Brutalist architecture, which was in great vogue worldwide during those years, was used by the military dictatorship to convey the message and image they sought, due to its modernism and constructive honesty, while simultaneously embodying the monumentality and imposing designs that captivated those entering the buildings.
During this time, young Peruvian architects became key figures in modern architecture, including Jacques Crousse, Adolfo Córdova, Oswaldo Nuñez, Juan Gunther, Walter Weberhofer, Daniel Arana, among others, who were part of the 'modernization' of the Peruvian capital with buildings that still contribute to the cityscape of Lima today.
With the end of the revolutionary government, under General Morales Bermudes in power (1975) and the return of democracy in 1985, Brutalist buildings constructed during those years and onwards no longer emphasized the reaffirmation of power and national sovereignty in their designs by their architects. However, concepts began to incorporate designs inspired by pre-Hispanic architecture, such as stepped pyramids, terraces, or futuristic industrial designs. Examples include the SENATI building (1975), featuring a pyramidal design, the UTEC building (2015), inspired by the terraces of Machu Picchu, presenting a vertical garden image, and futuristic industrial designs like Antonio Sant'Elia's Bank of Credit of Peru in Miraflores (1979).
