Ever since it was founded, the CAYC (Centro de Arte y Comunicación), helmed by the cultural promoter, artist, and businessman Jorge Glusberg, was intended as an interdisciplinary space where an experimental art movement could flourish. The establishment of collaborative networks connecting local and international artists and critics played an important role in this process. In addition to the exhibitions, a program of different activities exposed attendees to the latest in scientific thinking. According to Glusberg, the coordination between theoretical thinking and artistic practice was an essential part of social change.
Architecture and design had always been basic components of the CAYC’s interdisciplinary approach. In its early years, the center became affiliated with the Fundación de Investigación Interdisciplinaria (Foundation for Interdisciplinary Research), an organization that welcomed a group of dissident professors from the Facultad de Arquitectura y Ciencias Exactas at the Universidad de Buenos Aires following the forced occupation of universities that took place after the coup d’état in 1966. That earlier affiliation left an indelible mark on various aspects of the CAYC’s operations, such as its approach to many of its initiatives as “projects;” the use of heliographic copies (a technique usually used for copying blueprints) in its exhibitions; the center’s partnership with the industrial sector in exhibitions and contests; and the presence of several artist-architects among the founders of the Grupo de los Trece.
This newsletter announces the discussion series “Los arquitectos dialogan con sus obras. La Plata” (Architects Converse with their Works: La Plata), to be held at the CAYC in October through November 1976 following the presentations made by firms from Buenos Aires (GT- 626; doc. no. 1478949) and Córdoba (GT-646; doc. no. 1478952). The newsletter announces the participation of the most prestigious architectural firms in La Plata, the capital of the province of Buenos Aires, coordinated by the architect Enrique Dimant.
In addition to the event schedule, the newsletter mentions the EAE’s interdisciplinary approach and its interest in exploring the possibilities that new social theories might offer the creative process, which was supported by the CAYC’s program of activities.
The article provides an overview of the architectural courses offered at the Universidad Nacional de La Plata, initiating a debate about whether the city has an architectural style of its own.
