📍CDMX Architecture: An Art Deco Shop
Postcard 002: This 1930's building was designed by one of Mexico's most famous architects
So many clothing brands started from humble beginnings. Phil Knight sold sneakers out of his car’s trunk at track meets in Oregon. That became Nike. Yvon Chouinard did the same with handmade climbing gear in California. That became Patagonia. Kenneth Cole couldn’t afford to display his wares at an expo in New York, so he got a permit to park a truck outside the event and sold a year’s worth of shoes in two days. That, not surprisingly, became the eponymous Kenneth Cole.
It’s perhaps not a surprise, to you, that similar stories occur in Mexico City. Right now I’m standing on a corner in Centro looking up at Liverpool—a gorgeous art deco building designed by one of Mexico’s greatest architects and holding one of Mexico’s largest retail stores, publicly traded. The founder began his career, in 1847, by selling clothes out of a suitcase.
These days, you see Liverpool locations all around town. There’s a big one in Polanco. Another one on Insurgentes, and in Coyoacan, and in Lomas. They’re like Macy’s or Nordstrom’s, only instead of being named after the founder, they’re named after the port city in England from which the founder imported his goods. If that sounds like an odd way to name your going concern, we should remember that Liverpool was a beacon of steam-powered progress during the Industrial Revolution. Still, today, I imagine visiting Brits do a double take. I mean, can you imagine shopping for the latest fashions in a store called “Cleveland”?
The photo at top, taken at the intersection of C. de Venustiano Carranza (after a former president) and 20 de Noviembre (after Mexican Revolution Day), is Liverpool’s first-ever retail outlet, which opened in 1936. At the time it held the country’s first-ever escalators, which opened to great fanfare. Its strong vertical lines and symmetrical composition mark the building as late period art deco, and it happens to be one of the first-ever works by Enrique de la Mora, the architect who designed some of the most famous offices, civic centers, and churches in Mexico.
De la Mora was known as El Pelón, the bald. Hard to overestimate his influence. His work spanned almost half a century, during which time he pioneered experiments with hyperbolic-paraboloid roofs, more commonly known as saddle roofs. Today he’s mostly remembered for pioneering modern ecclesiastical architecture. Start with the church of shopping, end with the church of god. A tidy arc, for a man obsessed with arches.
Below, enjoy a few photos from his portfolio, along with links to further reading.
-s.
p.s. Spanish speakers might enjoy this INBAL booklet from 1981 surveying de la Mora’s work.
Iglesia de la Purísima (1940)
Monterrey. Good example of de la Mora’s early work with curvilinear construction, and an early instance of modern ecclesiastical architecture.
Bolsa de Valores de Mexico (1955)
CDMX. De la Mora used the existing indirect illumination of the space to help model the curved vault, which was one of the first of its kind in the world. The ‘85 earthquake affected many structures around the Bolsa, leading the exchange to move to its current location on Reforma—which holds a comprehensive museum of the exchange’s history.
Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (1965)
Madrid. The first instance of Mexican architecture in Europe. Still in use today.
📍What to see
If you’re touring the architectural sights around the Liverpool building in Centro, make some time for these notable stops in the immediate vicinity:
🌮 Where to eat 🌮
You’re most likely down here during the early AM or afternoon, so here are five spots that are consistently good (and usually, but not always, less trafficked by tourists):
El Cardenal: Breakfast. Traditional Mexican. Very good and dependable. One of five around town.
Café La Blanca: Breakfast. Old timers. Serving since 1915. They make their own bread.
Café De Tacuba: Breakfast. Ornate interior that must be seen. They make their own mole. Sometimes you’ll get a live mariachi band.
Loncheria La Rambla: Old-timer place for sincronizadas, traditional Mexican sandwiches with ham, cheese, and avocado. Try the chillies in vinegar, the guacamole and the crispy tortillas.
Los Cocuyos: Historic taco spot. Known for their “meat jacuzzi”.
🤐 Less touristy spots 🤐
Centro is a top tourist destination: you’ve got el Zócalo, the cathedral, the National Palace, and el Templo Mayor, and all that. Here are three lesser-trafficked sights that are worth seeking out:
College of San Ildefonso: First college of the Americas. Founded 1583. Birthplace of UNAM. Viceregal colonial building. Stunning courtyards. Murals by Diego Rivera (who met Frida Kahlo here) and Orozco.
Jose Luis Cuevas Museum: Dedicated to one of Mexico’s most famous (but now forgotten) artists of the 20th century. Also the fella who named Zona Rosa, CDMX’s LGBTQ district. Big hermaphrodite statue. Kinda in disrepair, but cool that way. Off the beaten path, even for Mexicans.
Hospital de Jesús: A stunning functionalist building built in front and over a stunning colonial era building. Founded by Cortés. Built where Cortés met Moctezuma II. Site of Cortés remains. Site of the first autopsy. Orozco mural. Still a working hospital, but a good visit for architecture and history buffs just to say you’ve been there.
Postcard to Kenzie from an art deco warehouse
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📕 What is Julian’s?
Julian’s is a handbook for curious travelers written by Steve Bryant, who lives and works in Mexico City. Julian’s is named for his grandfather, a very handsome southerner. The wordmark for Julian’s is designed in Frustro, a typeface inspired by the Pemrose Triangle, and which represents impossible objects—appropriate for Mexico City, which Salvador Dali once described as more surreal than his art. More about Steve at thisisdelightful.com.