Centro Cultural Huaquillas.

Abstract

The Huaquillas Cultural Center project is an urban facility designed to respond to the lack of cultural spaces in the border city of Huaquillas, province of El Oro, Ecuador. The proposal, with an area of approximately 6,500 m 2, integrates educational, artistic and recreational functions through exhibition halls, workshops, library, music areas and open spaces for collective activities. The design takes as reference the Jambelí culture and tabernacular architecture, which organized life around a central articulating axis. From this fusion emerges a core of encounter that structures the proposal, reinforcing local identity and sense of community belonging. The project also responds to the climatic conditions of the zone high temperatures and prevailing winds through passive strategies of thermal control, cross ventilation, double facades and shade systems. Sustainable solutions are incorporated such as sectorized rain drainage and local materials that strengthen the link with the territory. Beyond its architectural function, the cultural center is conceived as an inclusive, open and flexible space that promotes social cohesion, cultural exchange and integral development of Huaquillas as a border city.