Luis Barragán (1902–1988) is widely regarded as the most important Mexican architect of the twentieth century. Since 1996, the architect’s professional estate has been in the care of the Barragan Foundation, located in Birsfelden, Switzerland. Over the past two decades, a small team of researchers under the leadership of architectural historian Federica Zanco has systematically evaluated and catalogued the archival documents within the framework of a thorough analysis of Luis Barragán’s oeuvre. As part of a newly established partnership between the Barragan Foundation and the Vitra Design Museum, this material is now moving to new premises on the Vitra Campus in Weil am Rhein, Germany. With the aim of facilitating further scholarly investigation and cooperation with other institutions, the Barragán Archive will join the museum’s archival holdings from the estates of such prominent figures as Charles and Ray Eames, Alexander Girard, Anton Lorenz, George Nelson and Verner Panton.

The Barragán Archive will be hosted by the Vitra Design Museum in new facilities designed by Dieter Thiel, located in close proximity to the Vitra Schaudepot. This includes a state-of-the-art repository for the documents, a study room for visiting researchers, and the Barragán Gallery, a thematic exhibition space. Curated by Martin Josephy in collaboration with Luis E. Carranza, an expert on Latin American architecture, the gallery show presents drawings, photographs and other material from the Barragán Archive, together with biographical details and an illustrated chronology of modern architecture in Mexico. This ensemble of documents and supplementary information illuminates Barragán’s life and work in a larger context...

Barragán Gallery, Vitra Schaudepot