Privado: Tradition, Architecture and Territory in Peru

General Information

This course is for students interested in achieving a better understanding of Peruvian architecture during Viceroyal times –although a perspective of pre-Columbian expressions is of course part of the indispensable context- and how it clashed and mixed in turn with the ancient architectural and territorial transformations of the indigenous people already in the region. Theoretical and practical sessions will be given in both Lima and Cusco, with field work in specific sites. Visit to a number of contextual areas of cultural landscaping and heritage-valuable architecture will be also part of the program, along with exercises involving traditional building materials.

The cities of Lima and Cusco are arguably the most relevant case studies while trying to understand the incredibly complex and rich architecture, constructive tradition and interaction with the territory of the Spanish Viceroyal world in southern America. Lima was for many centuries the most important city of the region and thus a center of innovation and artistic development; while Cusco, as capital of the late Inca Empire and as a pivotal regional nucleus has always been a powerful influence, enriched by its unique multicultural perspective.

Professors of the course

Dr. Adriana Scaletti is an associate professor and researcher of Architecture at PUCP. She has published a number of scientific papers and presented in conferences in America and Europe, and since 2011 is head of the research group Patrimonio Arquitectónico (Architectural Heritage) at PUCP. She is a member of ICOMOS (International Council of Monuments and Sites) in the Scientific Committee for Historic Cities; of the Riva-Agüero Institute for High Studies in the Humanities; and a founding member of the professional non-profit association Patrimonio y Sitios [P+S]. Recently she has been a visiting professor at Rochester University (NY, USA) and has published the book “La Casa Cajamarquina: arquitectura, minería y morada – siglos XVII-XXI”.

Architect Renato Manrique, studied at the University San Antonio Abad from Cuzco and received a master’s degree in Architecture from FAU UNI (currently ABD). He has been a consultant for different urban development projects regarding local governments and non-gorvernmental organizations, such as the “Fondo Italo-Peruano” and the “Proyecto de Defensoría Camisea”.

Dr. José Canziani PhD in Architecture and Urban Studies from the Catholic University of Lovaina (Belgium). He has dedicated himself to the investigation of the history of urban planning, pre-Hispanic architecture, and landscape management.

Words of the professors

For the 2017 season a number of research activities and field work have been planned, along visits and lectures that should give context to some of the most remarkable (in some cases, spectacular) buildings and sites of Viceroyal Peru. A country that is a true mix of cultures and where syncretism still happens every day could only produce art and architecture in the same spirit, and the course strives to present the innovative and the traditional as parts of a complex whole. Lima and Cusco are vibrant, intense cities that have influenced the entire continent at one time or the other, and the study of their traditional architecture is in a way the study of the regional culture, materials, symbolism and inspiration- and also of today’s struggles in conservation and adaptation. You will be surrounded by some of the best examples of regional built heritage and cultural landscapes, and work together with international professionals in the search towards understanding and protecting these unique sites.