In their childhood memories, the gardens of the house had neither beginning nor end: they were a magnificent place to play and hide. It was later, when I was 16 years old, that José Manuel Bárcena Ortega He decided to study architecture and began to be more aware of what, in essence and form, He differentiated this house of any other I knew.
This is the House-Jardín Ortegadesigned and built by Luis Barragán between 1940 and 1942and inhabited by the architect himself until 1947. Subsequently, he acquired it Alfredo OrtegaPlatero artist, and his nephew José Manuel Bárcena was inherited, who 16 years ago inhabits his secrets.
José Manuel Bárcena has maintained intact architecture, has only changed the disposition of certain environments, such as the old dining room that today is his study.José Margaleff.
“Within the Barragán universe, this is A transition house. I can say that the architect himself considered it an experimentation, ”Bárcena reflected. Because he only lived five years and did not have time to make modifications (as it happened with his house-study), the Ortega house faithfully captures a specific moment and a new language of Barragán. “This is where he began to look for a more convenient architecture for what he wanted: spaces that will cause emotion, that will fill you ethically”, José Manuel Bárcena agreed.
Elements of His period in Guadalajarasuch as mass lattices and the management of the porches, although modernized. On the other hand, it is The influence of your trips. “The patio has Arab inspirationwith the source at floor level, a dump and the water jet, ”Bárcena described. The house of the house is the first that Barragán made, as a reflection of its passage through Morocco and the Maghreb; In the garden – which was projected together with the house, and with equal importance – printed its fascination with Ferdinand Bac and his book Enchanted Gardens.