C O N C R E TE J U N G L E
The 1970s-era Los Heroes building
in Santiago, Chile needed a
makeover—but there wasn’t a lot
of money or time.
The building was home to the
offices of Caja de Compensación
Los Heroes, a private non-profit
institution that administers social
security funds to retired workers.
“For us, the biggest challenge of
the project was to create a new
vision of an old building on a limited
layout and build a new image for
this institution,” says Santiago Raby,
the primary architect for the project
and principal of Murtinho+Raby
Architects in Santiago.
The vision for the retrofit was to
make over the concrete monolith
into a building that radiated light,
color and transparency. Rather than
simply adding more windows,
though, the team had an inspiration.
A GIANT GUMBALL
MACHINE
Instead of having the façade blend
into the building, Mr. Raby’s team
chose a collection of colorful panels with ultraviolet filters in vibrant
shades of orange, red, blue and
yellow. The result is a building that
sparkles in the sunlight like a giant
gumball machine during the day
and glows at night thanks to a
series of well-placed spotlights.
Inside, the panels set a colorful
backdrop and reflect tinted light off
of glass tabletops and reflective
surfaces. And the color scheme is
reinforced with bright carpeting
and other decorative elements.
“The main concept of Los
Heroes institution is to enjoy life,
which we interpret through a
colorful façade,” he says. “It
creates a special atmosphere to
work in and represents the
project identity.”
US$2,010,000
The total cost to
cover the building
SECOND SKIN
“We thought that the best option
was to surround the old structure with a second skin of glass,
covering the most exposed and
urban facades,” Mr. Raby says.
“The idea was to generate a
thickness between the inner
and private spaces and the
urban and public space.”
The space between the windows and the façade would also
make the building more environmentally friendly by creating
a pocket that ventilates the
warm air and shields the offices
from glare and urban noise.
US$600
The cost of the panels
per square meter
REDUCE, REUSE,
RECYCLE
“Low cost was a sustainable
attribute of this project
because the entire principal
structure of the old building
was recovered,” Mr. Raby
says. “We think that this kind
of project is an important
strategy to recycle the city,
and, as a consequence, to
build a sustainable urban
development.”
