Mario Cardenas - Architecture Portfolio

WHAT IS ARCHITECTURE?
To think of architecture is to think of art and science, of the objective and subjective, of the tangible and the intangible.
It is such a complex practice that it reaches its maximum expression even in its simplicity, but its value goes beyond the aesthetic value since its multiple characteristics are the source of a broader
function.
But to serve a function, one must ask what is architecture and how is it made?
Architecture from an objective point of view is the practice of spatial design that is responsible for the ordering of space through built volumetric interventions, these spaces can be solid or empty,
which respond to a social, historical, or environmental context, intending to create sustainable and functional spaces that can serve a specific function without ruling out the possibility of growing
or evolving along with its context.
But from a more intimate approach, architecture is the bridge that allows dialogue between the human being and the world, through his body new scenarios generate where interaction between
people and nature proposes fluidly.
It is a mirror that reflects the identity of a society through its urban layout and architectural character.
It is a time machine, which allows us to travel and understand the life of other cultures through their form and space, deciphering their way of living, building and dialoguing with their context.
But to be able to do architecture its not enough to know what it is, You have to understand the elements that compose it and serve as the basis for its function.
The new architecture is not created from day to day, it is the result of the orderly use of many elements that compose it - walls, columns, floors, doors, windows, solids, voids-, which evolve to
create new proposals of contemporary architecture, by using materials, technology and the social context of the time; to achieve growth, it is necessary to start from the conscious study of what
has already been built, since it is a timeless practice that - if it is well proposed -, its solutions serve as a guide to generate new answers to different problems.
Only when having a project, which origin arises from a successful architectural precedent, and has the quality to survive its time, memorability is obtained, which occurs when generating rich and
functional spaces that accumulate memories of many lives, enriching them through its spatiality.
When speaking of order, we do not refer to orthogonality, but rather the efficient flow of activities and trajectories within a building through its spatial composition, and the dialogue in synchrony of
the project’s mission that seeks to generate spaces with meaning and potential through the physical manifestation of its components.
The form is born from the function, the context, and the needs of the project, but its effect goes beyond the functional approach since it crosses the physical spectrum and manages to reach the
spiritual, evoking emotions in those who inhabit architecture. The emotions and experiences that it provokes are the results of its geometry, proportion, a rhythmic composition, materiality, and
spatial character, which when used with elegance reveal the beauty of the architecture.
Architecture is the construction manifestation of a proposed space; by default, it is an external entity and alien to nature, nevertheless it has the potential to take root in a place and begin to dialogue
in synchrony, not only adopting the character of the context but also improving it and enhancing its characteristics. Respecting the vegetation, the climate, the views, and understanding the
identity of the site, is when the architecture stops being invasive and becomes a successful addition to the context.
The function of architecture is to create rich and functional spaces that allow the community to develop efficiently in its day to day; is to generate sustainable projects that serve as additions to the
immediate context and are carriers of the identity of a culture, it is to materialize the way of life of a society and provide experiences and emotions that allow it to stay and continue to host entire
communities.
It is that we were, what we are and what we want to be.