Archiprix International 2001
Universidad Católica del Norte, Escuela de Arquitectura - Antofagasta, Chile
Veronica Carvajal Cortes
Tutors: M.A.Gebauer Muñoz, J.L.Santelices Escala, H.Illanes B.
The project is situated in the Mejillones peninsula to the north of Antofagasta City, in the hills between the Pacific Ocean and the west of the Atacama Desert, in the Second Region of Chile. The Mejillones peninsula is an orographic strip 58 km long and 21 km wide. The project lies parallel to Bandurrias Hill, which is part of the above-mentioned orographic strip. In general, the project wishes to address the following question: How does the form emerge from the environment? Above all, how can it relate to a barren desert area? We must seek the answer by examining the territory�s own form � or rather, the laws of its formation and constant movement. The project was planned to interact with the surroundings, and we can understand the territory by examining the determining geological factors. The desert, lacking all vegetation, clearly shows the morphological formative process. Its specific structure resulted from the tectonic movement of different oceanic plates, expressed in the geological fault line, in the upheaval, and in the fold of the surface. The basic geologic structure of the Mejillones peninsula was formed along the Bolfin fault line, where three different types of structure converge. The continent has been forced upwards by the subduction of the oceanic plate under the continental plate, there is a barren plain that is the product of the continuous erosion of the surface, and this is allied to hydrothermal fluid migration and stratification in the upper crust. The last-named factor was of special significance to the structure of the project. Further external agents, such as climate, winds, temperatures, etc., functioned as secondary agents, their additional erosion helping to shape the original body. In general, the project lies east-west, parallel to the Bandurrias Hill. This conceptual axis bears a talus sloping south-north, with the leeward side rising towards the Bandurrias Hill, creating an interior space protected from the prevailing winds. The project also reflects the transverse direction of the streams that erode the Bandurrias Hill, breaking the north-south axis into fragments running parallel to the shoreline. Thus, the main axis of the project, running east-west, accommodates a development of articulated fragments broken by the secondary transverse axes. The project appears to generate its own stratification as a product of the upheaval of the tectonic plate and of erosion of the soil. The programme offers possibilities for ecological tourism: the Atacama Desert can become an international tourist resource due to its archaeological value and the fascinating landscape. It is the most arid desert in the world. However, most of the tourist activity is concentrated further inland. The attractiveness of the coastal boundary of the Atacama Desert has not yet been fully appreciated. The Mejillones peninsula has the potential to become an important coastal tourist destination of the great beauty of the landscape and the wonderful natural beaches. This development project is an eco-tourist complex, with a general programme of areas for water and other sports, with chalets and a central hotel with areas for special events, dining rooms, swimming pools, and residential departments. The physical structure the project comprises a mixed structural system based on a rigid canopy with insulated half-boots, a supporting system of reinforced concrete walls with a cast foundation and an expansion point every thirty metres, and metallic complementary structures.