Old houses are more alive than newly constructed ones: Housing and material memory in León, Guanajuato, Mexico

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22234/recu.20241201.e784

Keywords:

Collective memory, Heritage, Historic center

Abstract

The representation of material memory in housing is a sequence between architecture and society, in which spaces are supported by symbols. This article analyzes the relationship between materials and buildings based on the oral memories of its occupants. A qualitative methodology was developed to analyze the materiality of a historic neighborhood, recorded microhistories on-site, and photographic records. In the findings, social ideologies are amalgamated with housing construction based on the memories of the occupants’ collective memory. Further, the material memory of housing goes beyond the idea of institutionalized heritage expressed in catalogs and lists to emphasize inherited social values reflected in everyday aspects of domestic life.

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Author Biographies

Carlos Ríos-Llamas, Autonomous University of Baja California

Mexican. Architect and Doctor in Scientific-Social Studies from the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Occidente (ITESO). Research Professor at the Faculty of Architecture and Design of the Autonomous University of Baja California. Experience in urban planning, housing policy design and direction of reports on urban violence prevention, both with the government and with agencies and organizations. Lines of research: spatial injustice, social inequalities in health, vulnerable corporealities, violence against women and informal settlements. Recent publications: Co-author in “Ordenamiento turístico comunitario: ruta crítica para definirlo” (2024) and in “Counterurbanization in the peri-urban forest of Guadalajara, Mexico” (2024).

Diego Vázquez Vallejo, Independiente

Mexican. Degree in architecture from Universidad La Salle Bajío (ULSB). Independent researcher. Experience in conceptualization and execution of housing projects at neighborhood scale. Line of research: interactions between the built environment and communities, from a multidisciplinary perspective. Recent publications: Co-author in “The materiality of housing and class order in León, Mexico” (2024).

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Published

2024-05-30

How to Cite

Ríos-Llamas, C., & Vázquez Vallejo, D. (2024). Old houses are more alive than newly constructed ones: Housing and material memory in León, Guanajuato, Mexico. Culturales, 12, 1–35. https://doi.org/10.22234/recu.20241201.e784