2010 marked the 200th anniversary of Chile's independence. In honor of this momentous date, the government announced the launch of the Bicentennial Heritage Program, the main goal of which is to preserve, restore and revitalize public spaces, heritage sites and city attractions. As part of this still ongoing program, the Metropolitano Park, located on the San Cristobal hill in the center of Santiago, is being renovated.
The competition for the project of the TV tower, announced at the end of November 2013, became one of the program points for the restoration of the Metropolitano Park. The main objective of the project is to connect the numerous antennas located on the San Cristobal Hill into a single structure. The tower should not only transmit radio signals and signals for analog and digital television, but also become a public space with a unique panoramic view - a landmark, city landmark and a new symbol of Santiago.
The winners were Smilyan Radich, whose project Archi.ru recently wrote for the Serpentine Gallery in London, Gabriela Medrano and Ricardo Serpell. After specifying the details, the TV tower project should be completed by 2017. The second place went to the team of Thomas Folk, Daniel Moreno, Rodrigo Rubio Cuadrado and Sofia Meno. And the third place was taken by Architects of Invention (London-Moscow-Tbilisi) and Archiplan S. A. In addition, the jury awarded three projects with honorable mentions.
We present the projects of three winners and three winners of incentive prizes.
First place
Smiljan Radic + Gabriela Medrano + Ricardo Serpell (featuring Claudio Torres and Matías Valcarce)
The height of the TV Tower of the winners of the competition is 140 meters, over which 11 rings with a diameter of 11.5 meters, installed on 5 masts, are evenly distributed. At night, the ring illumination mode changes depending on the current hour, working as a kind of clock.
According to the project, the TV tower is located 600 meters from the statue of the Virgin Mary on the top of the San Cristobal hill. One of the reasons why the jury awarded first place to this particular work is its extremely delicate attitude to the context: man-made monuments and natural landscape. The tower seems to dissolve in the environment, not claiming the leading role in the ensemble of the Metropolitano Park, but at the same time fulfilling all the tasks set in the competition.
At the foot of the tower there is a museum of the history of urbanization of the territory of the San Cristobal hill, an observation deck, a shop and a cafe.
Second place
Tomás Folch, Daniel Ibáñez Moreno, Rodrigo Rubio Cuadrado, Sofía Armanet Mena
In the work that won the second place, the authors relied on the expressive silhouette of the TV tower. This is its “strong point” and characteristic feature: the tower should look equally good from all sides. On the one hand, the silhouette of the TV tower reacts to the relief of the hill, echoes it; on the other hand, the tower is an absolute dominant in the composition of the park; it subjugates the surrounding sights, presenting them in a new, more favorable light.
Third place
Architects of Invention + Archiplan S. A.
Inspiration for the TV tower project by the team of Architects of Invention and Archiplan S. A. served as the work of such architects and artists as Rodchenko, Tatlin, Chernikhov and Malevich. One of the metaphors used by the authors in their work is an active volcano, of which there are many in Chile. Thus, the fiery red illumination of the vertical part of the tower symbolizes the incandescent lava flowing out of the volcano during the eruption. Another metaphor that has become a figurative component of the project is the halo as a symbol of greatness and respect. In this "halo" of the TV tower, 80 meters in diameter, there is an observation deck hanging over the top.
Equality reigns in the "relationship" between the TV tower and the statue of the Virgin Mary: the tower does not dominate, but it is not inferior in importance to the famous landmark.
Honorable Mention
Ruizsolar
In the Ruizsolar Arquitectos project, the authors made the TV tower as long as possible horizontally in order to rid the statue of the Virgin Mary on the San Cristobal hill from "competition". This is how the architects emphasize the primacy of this sculpture.
Inside there are technical rooms necessary for the operation of the antenna, and spaces for tourists. This "core" of the structure is surrounded by open observation decks.
Soza Atanacio + Aguirre Castro Arquitectos
Despite the fact that the tower of Soza Atanacio + Aguirre Castro Arquitectos is quite vertical, its light translucent structure does not at all argue for primacy with the statue of the Virgin Mary. According to the architects, the TV tower does not carry a figurative load and completely dissolves into the surrounding context.
GmasP + Saez Joannon Arquitectos
The project, called by the architects "Guard Tower", is a powerful 7-storey volume, as if belted with white ribbons. The alternation of these tapes with glazed parts, behind which the observation platforms are located, makes it possible to hide technical floors behind opaque elements.
