Building creative careers: Mexico City’s Centro unveils new campus
Mexico's Centro unveils new campus in the heart of the city
For the last decade, Centro – the school of higher education dedicated to creative careers in Mexico City, founded by Gina Diez Barroso de Franklin and Abraham Franklin – has focused on preparing its students for jobs in design, communication, marketing, film and digital media. 'The reason we called it Centro is because we thought that the school has to engage with culture, with society in general,' says general director Kerstin Scheuch.
When they saw that Centro was outgrowing its campus, they commissioned one of the country’s biggest architectural talents, Enrique Norten and his firm, TEN Arquitectos to build over a 5,600 sq m site on Avenida de los Constituyentes.
Norten designed 26,000 sq m of space, including 2,500 sq m of green space and a 450-seat auditorium. Stunning views surround much of the site. The centerpiece of the campus is an expansive 9,687 sq ft staircase composed of black granite and white resin and decorated with the floral swirls of Dutch-born, Mexican-based artist Jan Hendrix. Norten intended for it to be a gathering place.
'It’s where people move to bring them into that space, to energise the space, for young people to meet each other, to see each other, to hang out,' explains the architect. Rather than hide the campus’ stairs and pathways, Norten wanted the students and teachers to move about freely, adding two staircases that also accentuate the structure with their zigzags. 'I wanted people to really have to go through the whole building to get to different places. So they could use those stairs, they could use these stairs, and move to other places – you can discover the building in many different ways.'
The structure was built according to Leed platinum certification standards; 50 per cent of all the building's areas are naturally ventilated, thanks to perforated metal walls, while 50 per cent of its construction materials were sourced locally. All of the rainwater is reused, and all of the residual water is recycled. Additionally, 25 per cent of consumed energy is solar generated.
Diez Barroso de Franklin believes that good design impacts productivity, subsequently furnishing the school’s classrooms with brands like Kartell, Technica and Vitra. Desks made by the latter have the capability of moving throughout the classrooms, while Kartell chairs provide ergonomic seating. 'There have been studies that if you work on places like this with good furniture, you work better,' she said.
Although the school is for-profit, scholarships will be given to any student who proves he or she is qualified. 'It’s all about giving them an opportunity,' says Diez Barroso de Franklin.
INFORMATION
Photography courtesy of Centro
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
-
Herbar’s barrier cream repairs skin damage using medicinal mushrooms
Herbar has launched The Barrier Cream, which harnesses the healing power of mushrooms and adaptogens to repair, soothe and protect the skin barrier
By Hannah Tindle Published
-
The new Renault 5 E-Tech’s design secrets and designer dreams revealed
Wallpaper* talks to Renault’s Laurens van den Acker and Gilles Vidal about how they shaped the eagerly awaited Renault 5 E-Tech
By Guy Bird Published
-
Anselm Kiefer's vast mixed media works take over Venice's Palazzo Strozzi
A new exhibition, 'Fallen Angels,' sees Anselm Kiefer present a combination of old and new works that reflect Palazzo Strozzi's unique position within the Florentine Renaissance
By Finn Blythe Published
-
A Mexican artist’s studio makes the most of light and volume in San Miguel Chapultepec
A Mexican artist's studio and home, designed by JJRR in the heart of Mexico City, makes the most of volume and light for its owner, Stefan Brüggemann
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
River Wing at Clare College responds to its historic Cambridge heritage
University of Cambridge opens its new River Wing on Clare College Old Court, uniting modern technology with historic design
By Clare Dowdy Published
-
Pabellón de la Reserva and its sustainable architecture nod to its natural setting
Pabellón de la Reserva by architecture studio Hemaa offers an idyllic countryside getaway, a stone's throw from Mexico City
By Ellie Stathaki Last updated
-
Orchid Pavilion channels Japanese philosophy for blossoming flowers in Puerto Escondido
Orchid Pavilion by CCA Centro de Colaboración Arquitectónica provides fitting shelter for flower conservation in Mexico's Casa Wabi
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Residential development The Village on the Yucatán Peninsula frames its verdant environment
The Village by Sordo Madaleno is a meticulously composed apartment building, built on a strict grid with an emphasis on outside space and connection to site
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
1i Arquitectura’s House of the Tall Trees celebrates a spectacular forested site
This Mexican retreat, House of the Tall Trees, makes the most of a wooded site with a striking combination of glass, timber and concrete
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Casa Carrizo was designed as a breezy Mexican beach house
Casa Carrizo, designed by Mexican architecture studio BAAQ, is a beach house sitting on the idyllic shores of Mexico’s Pacific coast
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Casa HMZ by Lucio Muniain offers a labyrinthine sense of gradual discovery
An intriguing new build by Lucio Muniain channels the best of 20th-century Mexican architecture
By Ana Karina Zatarain Published