Eugenio Peschard Delgado was a Mexican architect. Prior to joining the faculty of the

National University A national university is mainly a university created or managed by a government, but which may also at the same time operate autonomously without direct control by the state. In the United States, the term "national university" connotes the highe ...

in 1940, Peschard was an architect in the Ministry of Communications and Public Works and a member of the Council of Architecture of the Federal District. He translated a number of architectural books, including works by Hardy Cross, S. Timoshenko, and Vanden Broek.

Early life

Born in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

sometime between 1877 and 1937, Peschard was the son of José Guadalupe Peschard and Concepción Delgado de Peschard. One of six children, Peschard's brothers were José Angel Peschard Delgado, a doctor and academic; Armando Peschard Delgado, a Mexico City doctor; and Guillermo Peschard, an orthodontic dentist and academic at the Universidad Juárez del Estado de Durango.

Tour of the United States

Peschard traveled to the United States on a trip that was featured in the U.S. Department of State's official Bulletin in 1948, during a period of increased outreach by the U.S. government to foster ties with Mexican officials. Alonso Mariscal, another professor at the

National Autonomous University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public university, public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countri ...

, traveled with Peschard to

Washington D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

to begin a two-month study of American methods of teaching architecture. Their visit was funded through the Latin American travel-grant program of the Department of State. Messrs. Marsical and Peschard visited the schools of architecture of

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

, the

Illinois Institute of Technology The Illinois Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Illinois Tech and IIT, is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Tracing its history to 1890, the present name was adopted upon the m ...

, and the Chicago Art Institute.

Contribution to Mexico City architecture

In the 20th century,

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

grew significantly. The construction of the Ciudad Universitaria from 1950 to 1953 had a noticeable effect on subsequent architecture in the city. The most notable buildings are the Rectoría designed by Salvador Ortega,

Mario Pani Mario Pani Darqui (March 29, 1911 – February 23, 1993) was a Mexican architect and urbanist. He was one of the most active urbanists under the Mexican Miracle, and gave form to a good part of the urban appearance of Mexico City, with emblema ...

and Enrique del Moral, the Library, by Juan O’Gorman, Gustavo Saavedra and Juan Martínez de Velasco, and the Science Building by Peschard, Raúl Cacho, and Félix Sánchez. According to Daniel Case, "Much of what makes the campus culturally significant is its huge murals that decorate the facades of many of the buildings." These murals were done by

Diego Rivera Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957) was a Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the Mexican muralism, mural movement in Mexican art, Mexican and international art. Between 1922 and 1953, Rivera painted mural ...

David Siqueiros David Alfaro Siqueiros (born José de Jesús Alfaro Siqueiros; December 29, 1896 – January 6, 1974) was a Mexican social realist painter, best known for his large public murals using the latest in equipment, materials and technique. Along with ...

and others, with themes relating to Mexican history and identity. According to architecture historian Valerie Fraser, Peschard's Science Faculty design "counteracts the rather more rigid geometry of the Rectorate," with its mural by

José Chávez Morado José Chávez Morado (4 January 1909 – 1 December 2002) was a Mexican artist who was associated with the Mexican muralism movement of the 20th century. His generation followed that of Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siq ...

at the upper part of the facade placed on a convex curve. Entitled ''The Conquest of Energy'', Morado's mural, according to Fraser, is "an allegory of the pursuit and conquest of scientific knowledge," which culminates, "on a slightly ambivalent note," with the discovery of nuclear energy. In 2004, Celia Ester Arredando Zambrano wrote that the placement of the Science Building at the center of the university's main plaza "reveals that even though the campus was inspired by the modern city, a symbolic arrangement seems to prevail in the composition." Art historian Justino Fernández highlighted the building's auditorium, as well as its interior peculiarities, in particular what he termed its "unusual classrooms."

Books

*''Resistencia de Materiales'' (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 1963),

References

{{authority control Peschard, Eugenio Peschard, Eugenio Peschard, Eugenio Peschard, Eugenio Peschard, Eugenio Peschard, Eugenio Peschard, Eugenio