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This bank branch, for its expressiveness, proportions and urban solution, is a notable example of mod-ern Venezuelan architecture. It is one of the best works of American Emile Vestuti, who arrived in Venezuela hired by the firm (founded in 1948), by Moisés Benacerraf and Carlos Guinand Baldó. The building, located on a corner of the then Calle Real de Sabana Grande, shows a deft handling of context, place and program variables by superimposing two volumes. The lower one (bank agency) is located east, respecting the lot’s difference in level, the urban border and the height of the Calle Negrín buildings. The high office body is toward Sabana Grande, coated with changing conditions of travertine: laminar and flat on the surfaces in contact with the public; frag-mented and with varying textures on large surfaces, to not reflect excessive sunlight. The corner’s articulation, where the access to both volumes is marked by a cylindrical isolated column, displays skillful handling of scale and wise treatment of the transition from open to closed. Institutional commitments, without sacrificing contem-poraneity or avoiding characterization due to climatic conditions, made this work a reference point. North and east display differences, with Le Corbusier style brise-soleils with a rhythm that honors the great Swiss master.
planta-baja