One sunny day as I was wandering around Mexico City’s historic downtown, a Catholic nun — fully dressed in a formal habit — gave me her phone number. And she opened my eyes to a world that I’d never seen before in Mexico’s capital.
No, this devout woman wasn’t being overly forward or betraying her faith by sharing her phone number with a random guy on the street. She was simply giving me the contact information for the convent where she lived, which just happens to have been created by the man who many consider to be Mexico’s greatest modern architect: Luis Barragán.
Born in Guadalajara in 1902, Luis Ramiro Barragán Morfín was a Mexican architect and engineer who influenced countless architects in Mexico and beyond. His take on modernism includes clean lines, hidden light sources and the use of raw materials. If you’re and architecture lover and looking for interesting things to do in Mexico City, you should have some of his works on your must-see list — especially these three places, all of which are open to the public for tours and have become tourist attractions for those in the know.
You can also check out the brief travel video I made of Casa Ortega at the bottom of this page and in my YouTube channel.
Casa Ortega
Dating to 1942, Casa Ortega was the first house designed and inhabited by Barragán. I enjoyed a private tour of the residence arranged by the St. Regis Mexico City, one of the city’s top luxury hotels, which specializes in setting up unique experiences for its guests. This beautiful home features some of the original furnishings from the Ortega family, who moved in after Barragán left. Click here to see a video reel I made of the building.
Casa Estudio Luis Barragán (Luis Barragán House and Studio)
Barragán’s former residence, built in 1948, is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It offers a fascinating glimpse at the life and work of the artist (his personal life, by the way, seems to have an air of secrecy, and there is debate about some aspects of his identity).
Convento de las Capuchinas (Capuchin Convent) — no Website; Tel. +52-55-5573-2395
Ask anyone to picture a convent, and the first image that comes to mind is usually something along the lines of a centuries-old structure graced with countless arches and shadowy corridors. But this magnificently offbeat institution, which Barragán designed in 1952, exudes a spectacular simplicity. Nuns lead the tours, which make it even more interesting — one sister stood at the door when we arrived, holding a basket where all visitors were required to leave their cell phones, since no photos are allowed inside.
These are just three places to view the architectural wonders created by Luis Barragán in Mexico. If you’re in Mexico City, they’re certainly worth the trip.
I’m a travel writer, travel blogger and Mexico travel specialist, and I love sharing travel tips to make your next vacation or business trip better. My new memoir was just published: Prepare for Departure: Notes on a Single Mother, a Misfit Son, Inevitable Mortality and the Enduring Allure of Frequent Flyer Miles. Please click and check it out!
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