The Polyforum Siqueiros (Part 2, the rescue)
The integral project guarantees its current location, the preservation of its architecture and the artistic work it contains, as well as providing the necessary resources for its preservation, maintenance and long-term operation.
On July 18, 1980 an artistic monument was declared the work of David Alfaro Siqueiros, was this one of national or private property, and on October 28, 2014 the Government of the city of Mexico declared to the Polyforum urban Cultural patrimony of the city what Asegurab To its future as a cultural and patrimonial asset of public interest.
Therefore, with the consensus of scholars, experts, artists, neighbors and authorities of Mexico City, a rescue project was designed that for the first time in the history of the Polyforum will make possible the integral restoration of the building and its murals.
From the dialogue between the Suarez family, owner of the property, the restoration and architecture areas of the National Institute of Fine Arts, the National Autonomous University of Mexico, through the Institute of Engineering, and the Ministries of Culture and Urban development of Mexico City, a trust was constituted whose objective is to contribute the resources for the integral restoration, the maintenance and the operation of the Polyforum. It is an unprecedented agreement because with the creation of the trust the economic resources will be private, but the management will be public and in its body of government participate the principal cultural institutions of the country and of the City of Mexico.
Precisely the resources of the trust will come from the capital gains of the real estate project that, without moving or touching the Polyforum and without changing the use of the land with which it works since its creation, puts it at the center of a new public space for Mexico City. The strengths of the proposal, from the standpoint of intervention in built heritage, are precisely, respect for the site and original use, recognition of the value of Polyforum as Cultural heritage and public space.
This is a mixed-use real estate project, carried out by the architect Esteban Suárez, grandson of Don Manuel Suárez, patron of the original ensemble. The existing building is joined by a slender tower − which occupies less than 15% of the total space of the premises −, and a square. This, fully glazed, has an interesting volumetry, with a plane inclined towards the roof of the Polyforum that allows to observe from the street the 3500 m2 of murals located in this facade. Just below this plane, there are some steps open to the public that likewise aim to appreciate the murals of the northern part of the Polyforum, currently semi-hidden.
The proposal relocates the cars in basements to create an open and public forum and creates an outdoor veranda that provides a different view of the city and the Polyforum. In short, it is an interesting concept that allows to see those areas of the building and its surroundings that were not perceived, while positioning this space as a critical and experimental cultural center, promoter of contemporary artistic debates. Long and renewed life for the Polyforum Cultural Siqueiros.