The Paracas Culture Site Museum adds a new challenge, it must blend into the landscape that embodies the cultural character of the region, part of the most important ecological beauty in the natural reserve of the Peruvian coastal desert. The project is built on the ruins of a structure abandoned in the 2006 earthquake, using a compact rectangular geometry. Existing cracks or defects are used to differentiate functional spaces within the museum: studios, meeting rooms, and spaces dedicated to the preservation of archaeological artifacts. It is through these “cracks” that the different spaces within the museum are accessed: open spaces that form part of the landscape and at the same time create spaces of necessary privacy, allowing life in the vast desert. The entire building is made of volcanic ash concrete, ideal for the desert environment. The exposed concrete, after being polished, became one of its main features, its natural reddish tone blending in with the surrounding hills. The workers left some verdigris when polishing the concrete, which gave the museum a ceramic appearance, similar to the Colombian ceramic decoration that was formerly found inside the building. Inside the museum, the seemingly contradictory contrast between the complex spaces and spiral paths used by ancient Peruvians and the modern smooth, transparent spaces can be explored. The museum’s demands on the Paracas desert environment and on its collection are addressed through the “environmental corrector”, which also defines the architecture and the museum. The device consists of a lamppost that determines its position in the room as needed, and it can also control natural light, artificial light, natural ventilation, and cooling in different environments. Depending on the needs of the project and its location. The device can control natural light, artificial light, natural ventilation, and cooling in different environments. Its geometric shape embodies the characteristics of Paracas textiles, its most outstanding technical and artistic expression.
Project Information:
Architect: Barclay & Crousse
Address: Ica, Peru
Authors: Sandra Barclay, Jean Pierre Crousse
Building area: 1170.0 sqm
Project year: 2016
Manufacturers: UNACEM, Miyasato
Assistant Architects: Rodrigo Apolaya
Structural Engineers: Antonio Blanco
Contractor: Consorcio Paracas
Client: Agencia Española para la Cooperación Internacional (AECID)
