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Montserrat Palmer

Montserrat Palmer
Born(1933-09-13)September 13, 1933
Alma materUniversity of Chile
OccupationArchitect
Notable workEstación Mapocho

Montserrat Palmer (Santiago, Chile, September 13, 1933) is a Chilean architect, designer, academic, researcher, and editor.

She was the first female Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Urban Studies at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile.[1]

Education and career

Born to Catalan parents, Palmer was born in Santiago, Chile, and enrolled at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile in 1952. However, she eventually graduated from the University of Chile in 1961.[1]

Two years later, she was hired as a professor at the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the University of Chile. In 1974, she had to resign from her position due to the interventions of Augusto Pinochet's military dictatorship. The following year, she was hired as a professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, where she eventually became the first female Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Urban Studies, leading the institution from 2000 to 2004.[2]

As a researcher, her first publication was entitled 50 años de arquitectura metálica en Chile ("50 Years of Metallic Architecture in Chile"), composed of two volumes.[3] In 1984, she published La comuna de Providencia y la ciudad jardín ("The Providencia District and the Garden City"), a study where she deployed an analysis strategy that mixed morphology and history to examine the Providencia commune in Santiago, Chile.[4]

In 1993, she published La arquitectura contemporánea de la madera en Chile ("Contemporary Wood Architecture in Chile"), a development study covering a period from 1969 until 1990, which included works that became emblems of post-dictatorship architecture in Chile, such as the Klotz House (1990) by Mathias Klotz and the Chile Pavilion for the Seville Expo '92 by Germán del Sol and José Cruz Ovalle.[4]

Legacy

Due to her research on the history of architecture in Chile, she has been considered "the voice of authority in the architectural culture of Chile between the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century."[5]

Between 1980 and 2010, she was the Editor-in-chief of Ediciones ARQ, advocating for the technical dimension of architecture and for finding an aesthetic that arises precisely from architects' commitment to building materials.[4] In 2010, when Montserrat stepped down as director, the publisher released a monograph on her works.[6]

José Rosas, former dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Urban Studies, stated in 2018:

"Montserrat Palmer has positioned Chilean and Latin American architecture, as well as the theoretical reflection of different architecture and urbanism researchers, in a place of undeniable prestige and recognition among their peers."[6]

In 2023, as part of the Chile Architecture Biennial,[7] architects Loreto Lyon and Cristobal Molina reinterpreted the Plaza de la Constitución pavilion, which references an intervention created by Montserrat Palmer for the 1972 United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD III) in Santiago.[8]

Notable works

  • Hostería La Pirámide (1963), alongside Carlos Martner
  • Plaza de la Constitución Pavilion (1972)[8]
  • Estación Mapocho Cultural Center (1994), designed alongside Teodoro Fernández, Rodrigo Pérez de Arce and Ramón López.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b bacanas (2023-02-21). "Mujeres Bacanas | Montserrat Palmer Trías (1933)". Mujeres Bacanas (in Spanish). Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  2. ^ Baixas, Juan Ignacio. "Espejos y no biombos: Montserrat Palmer Trías termina su período como Directora de Ediciones ARQ" [Mirrors and not screens: Montserrat Palmer Trías ends her tenure as Director of Ediciones ARQ]. Editorial ARQ (75): 97.
  3. ^ Pérez Oyarzún, Fernando; Pérez de Arce, Rodrigo; Torrent, Horacio (2010). Chilean Modern Architecture Since 1950. Texas A&M University Press. p. 159. ISBN 9781603443333.
  4. ^ a b c Mondragón, Hugo; Rozas Reinecke, Bárbara (September 2018). "Contra el olvido: la voz de Montserrat Palmer y el discurso de la arquitectura contemporánea en Chile" [In order not to forget: the voice of Montserrat Palmer and the contemporary architectural discourse in Chile]. Dearq (23): 20–35.
  5. ^ Harrouk, Christelle (2022-03-08). "International Women's Day 2022: On Rebalancing Forces and Adjusting the Narratives". ArchDaily. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  6. ^ a b Sánchez, Antonieta (2010-06-09). "Ediciones ARQ publica obras de Monserrat Palmer". Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  7. ^ Dreith, Ben (2023-01-23). "Smiljan Radić creates inflatable stage for Chile's architecture biennial". Dezeen. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  8. ^ a b Dejtiar, Fabian (2023-03-09). "Exploring Vulnerable Habitats in the XXII Chile Architecture Biennial". ArchDaily. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
  9. ^ Valencia, Nicolás (2022-11-23). "Santiago Architecture City Guide: 41 Buildings, Complexes and Parks to Visit in the Chilean Capital". ArchDaily. Retrieved 2024-05-16.