Lo Matta Houses . Heritage property from the 18th century representative of rural architecture in the central area, located in the Vitacura district . It was declared a Historic Monument in 1984 .
Summary
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- 1 Location
- 2 History
- 3 Architecture
- 4 National Monument
- 5 Present
- 6 See also
- 7 Image Gallery
- 8 sources
Location
Located at Avenida Kennedy No. 9350, Vitacura, Santiago Metropolitan Region , Chile .
History
The history of Las Casas de Lo Matta dates back to August 30, 1546 , when the Cabildo gave Francisco de Riberos a 200-block land grant located to the east of the recently founded city of Santiago . This farm had belonged to the cacique Vitacura and was used by the Spanish to sow and plant vineyards and fruit trees.
At the beginning of the 18th century, the agricultural property passed into the hands of the French navy captain Luis de Caux, whose last name was castellanized as Coo. In 1793 , the farm was inherited by his granddaughter Mercedes Coo Astorga, married to Antonio Martínez de Matta y Casamiglia, who built a new house in the manner of Spanish farmhouses, whose model was introduced in Chile in the second half of the aforementioned century. .
At the beginning of the 20th century it was bought by Aurelio González, during the 1920s he became mayor of the newly formed commune of Las Condes , created in 1901 by the owners of the farms in the sector, and transformed Lo Matta into a model agricultural property. . Upon his death, his son Mario González Díaz de Valdés, together with his wife Inés Tonkin de González, dedicated themselves to conserving and restoring the houses of Lo Matta, which was visited by personalities such as Prince Humberto de Savoy, the writer Antoine de Saint- Exupéry and the President of France , Charles de Gaulle .
The González Tonkin family parceled out a large part of the land in the 1950s, which was urbanized creating a new neighborhood in the sector called Vitacura. In1967, the Municipality of Las Condes acquired the house and the hectare of land that surrounded it, the last remnant of the grant granted in the16th centuryto Don Francisco de Riberos, with the aim of preserving it and adapting it fora museumand cultural center.
In1970, the decorator Mario Matta Echaurren asked the Municipality to grant the property with the commitment to restore it and open it to the public. He began a complete transformation, but his early death from him in1972left his work unfinished. A few years later, the deterioration of the buildings led to their demolition, leaving only the18th centurystanding sector. To prevent its total destruction and motivate its recovery, in1984the National Monuments Council declared Lo Matta a National Monument. That year the Municipality commissioned thearchitectPatricio Gross the restoration of the building, who recovered the characteristics of this colonial construction. The landscaper Marta Viveros was in charge of the restoration and recreation of the traditional Lo Mattagarden, with its paths andfruit trees. Recovered its essence, tradition and dignity, it was inaugurated onSeptember 15,1988.
In1998, Lo Matta Cultural became part of the Cultural Corporation of Vitacura, in order to become a cultural space that would receive established and emerging exhibitors and mount shows of artistic value, providing an interesting cultural offer to the whole family. Its activities were very well received, receiving around 25,000 visits a year.
InJanuary 2009a new restoration began due to the action oftermitesthat had attackedbeamsandpillars, complying with the anti-seismic design standard for buildings and making it able to support the large number of people who pass through it, without changing itsarchitecture. .
In2019it is renamed “Lo Matta Cultural”, to reflect the new identity of this Cultural Center, which seeks to become an icon within the eastern area of Santiago.
Architecture
In1793, they built a new house in the manner of the Spanish farmhouses whose model was introduced in Chile in the second half of the 18th century. It had two independent floors, thickadobewalls, pillars in the corridors on the second floor, a strong square frame for the floor beams, a double interior row of pillars in the warehouse area, and all the structures and elements that characterize this rural architecture. adapted to the climate of central Chile.
Casas de Lo Matta reopened its doors on June 3, 2010 , after being restored. It has an area of 1,020 m², in its renovation the wooden details were carved and the adobe that covers the house was made in a traditional way. In this way, its two levels, which include a central volume and two corridors, maintained their colonial style, respecting all the original materials and architecture.
National Monument
On May 4, 1984, Las Casas de Lo Matta and its adjacent lands were declared a Historical Monument, through Decree No. 261 of the Ministry of Education .
Present
Currently, Lo Matta Cultural is a center that hosts art exhibitions, plays , music , workshops, courses, conferences , among others. It also has a cafeteria, guaguateca, games areas,greenhouse , orchard with vegetables and fruits . Public service hours: Monday to Friday, 08:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Exhibition Hours: Monday to Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
