The architectural history of Mexico bears with it a wealth of symbolism that gives insight into the different time periods that have played host to contemporary cultural movements throughout the country's history. 

© Pim Schalkwijk

The architectural history of Mexico bears with it a wealth of symbolism that gives insight into the different time periods that have played host to contemporary cultural movements throughout the country's history. Today, it's common to hear well-known architects calling for, not the creation of new spaces, but for the restoration of already existing ones. This stance insists that it is one's duty as an architect to rescue a site's memory by bringing it into the here and now. As philosopher Jean Paul-Sartre put it, "what is important is not what happens to us, but what we do with what happens to us." In keeping with Sartre's phrase, we have compiled a list of 6 restoration projects that aim to rescue sites and show the interconnectedness of different time periods in Mexican history. San Pablo Academic and Cultural Center / Taller de Arquitectura Mauricio Rocha + Gabriela Carrillo  

© Francisco León

Restoration of the Santo Domingo de Soriano Monastery entitled "San Pablo." Located only a block away from the main square in Oaxaca, between Independencia and Hidalgo, you can find a complex of buildings that form part of the first dominican conve...