Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Church of St Francisco

Quito, Ecuador

1534-1604


When designing for the new world they aimed to proclaim the power of Christianity by building massive churches. They wanted to appeal to the already Christians, but also convert the natives. And lastly they wanted the wow factor, they didn’t want the people coming from Europe to feel like they had a church that was not compatible with home.


The church of St. Francisco is a Roman Catholic Church that is one of the largest built from colonial Latin America. The complex houses the Virgin of Quito, which is sacred to the city. The church is made up by three spaces: the public square, the courtyard, and the church itself. It includes 13 cloisters, and three churches. Although the exterior is a plan style with the retable entrance, the interior is what really the “wow” part of this church. Because gold was so abundant here they really used that to their advantage, and by doing so created a space that no European or native had ever experienced before.



Sources

Class Notes

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