Zonas de Caracas

COPRED-LB

The Covered Plaza has most of the themes Vi­llanueva developed for the entire campus project. Intended as a civic center, the heart of Ciudad Universitaria, it is a perfect space for the tropical climate and the quintessential embodiment of the «synthesis of the arts», which undoubtedly makes it a wonderful and memorable place. The area formally links the buildings of the Rector’s Office, Paraninfo or Assembly Hall, Aula Magna, Concert Hall and Library. Fluid, open and continuous, its conception proposes the dissolution of traditional boundaries between indoors and outdoors, letting the perception and evaluation of the space itself prevail. Its shape is determined by a sober reinforced concrete roof that uses a Cartesian support system, consisting of slender columns, beams and slabs placed like a sequence of porticos, with similar spans between supports that multiply in several directions. The structural arrangement gives the plaza a perceptual order that highlights the importance of the modern conception of space as a protagonist, housing murals and sculptures that create a dynamic architectural promenade that emulates a musical symphony divided into movements, which subtly and constantly change the perception of the space. The remarkable polychrome murals by Fernand Léger (1881-1955), Victor Vasarely (1906-1997), Pascual Navarro (1923-1986) and Mateo Manaure (1926) capture the light inside the shaded space that acts as preamble to the Aula Magna, accompanied by two notable sculptures: Pastor de Nubes by Jean Arp (1887-1966) and Amphion by Henri Laurens (1885-1954), a direct reference to the mythological character that built the city of Thebes with his lyre and a clear homage to Vi­llanueva. Light and shadow contrasts, light wells, courtyards and vegetation are elements of this extraordinary architectural complex that includes the main works of the «Synthesis of Major Arts», undeniable proof of Villanueva’s particular vision and sensibility, which bears witness to the golden age of Venezuelan art and the opening of national culture to international artistic vanguard.