Hospicio Cabañas
Front facade of Hospicio Cabañas
General information
LocationGuadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Year(s) built1796-1810
HeightChapel dome: 32.5 metres (107 ft)
Technical details
Floor count1
Design and construction
Architect(s)Manuel Tolsá
Official nameHospicio Cabañas, Guadalajara
TypeCultural
Criteriai, ii, iii, iv
Designated1997 (21st session)
Reference no.815
RegionLatin America and the Caribbean

The Hospicio Cabañas (Spanish pronunciation: [osˈpisjo kaˈβaŋas]) or Cabañas Museum in Guadalajara, Jalisco was one of the oldest and largest orphanage and hospital complexes in the Americas. Now turned into a museum, the main hall hosts the magnum opus frescoes of muralist painter José Clemente Orozco. The place was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997.

History


The complex was founded in 1810 by the Bishop of Guadalajara in order to combine the functions of a workhouse, hospital, orphanage, and almshouse. It owes its name to Juan Ruiz de Cabañas who was appointed to the see of Guadalajara in 1796 and engaged Manuel Tolsá, a renowned architect from Mexico City, to design the structure.

Tolsá's design was based on classic examples such as Les Invalides in Paris and El Escorial near Madrid. The buildings form a rectangle measuring 164 by 145 metres (538 by 476 ft). These are single-storey structures which are 7.5 metres (25 ft) in height. The chapel is twice as high and has a dome rising to 32.5 metres (107 ft). The complex is erected on one level, "so as to facilitate the movement of the sick, the aged, and children."[1]

Following the death of Cabañas in 1823, construction continued until 1829. Although it served for a time as barracks in the mid-19th century, the hospital lasted well into the 20th century and continued to function until 1980, when the Cabañas Cultural Institute, with affiliated schools for arts and crafts, moved in. The highlight of the interior decoration is a series of monumental frescoes by José Clemente Orozco, including one of his most famed creations, the allegory of The Man of Fire (1936–39).

Hospicio Cabañas was made a Unesco World Heritage site in 1997.[2] Funded through a collaboration by the Cabañas Institute, Jalisco's cultural ministry and the Hilario Galguera Gallery in 2014, French conceptual artist Daniel Buren created a series of site-specific works in 18 of the 23 courtyards, with cloister columns wrapped in geometric patterns, vaults painted in bright hues and mirrored structures built to create distorted views of familiar surroundings.[2]

The sculptures La sala de los magos and Los magos universales by Alejandro Colunga are installed outside the building.

References

  1. ↑ "World Heritage List, Guadalajara, Mexico, No. 815". unesco.org. UNESCO. 1 July 1997. Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  2. 1 2 Rojas, Laurie (19 March 2014). "French artist's site-specific interventions unveiled in Guadalajara's World Heritage Site". The Art Newspaper. Archived from the original on 3 April 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2016.
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