La Cuadra is a cultural space founded in 2025 dedicated to exploring the dialogue between contemporary art and architecture. Conceived as a place for research, production, and aesthetic experience. La Cuadra promotes curatorial projects, exhibitions, and interdisciplinary programs that broaden the understanding of Barragán's legacy and its resonance in current practices. Its development is part of the Romero Foundation's vision to create an open, dynamic cultural campus committed to critical reflection and creative experimentation.
Luis Ramiro Barragán Morfín Guadalajara, Mexico (1902–1988)
Luis Barragán (b. 1902, Guadalajara, Jalisco; d. 1988 Mexico City) was one of the most influential architects of the 20th century. After graduating in civil engineering and architecture (1925), he made several trips to Europe that profoundly marked his sensibility, particularly his interest in gardens, landscape, and vernacular architecture. His work was characterized by a unique synthesis of modernity, tradition, spirituality, and landscape, visible in private residences as well as urban and landscape architecture projects. Among his most notable works are the gardens and planning of Pedregal de San Ángel, Las Arboledas, Cuadra San Cristóbal, Casa Gilardi, and various collaborations with artists such as Mathias Goeritz. In 1976, the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA) dedicated a retrospective exhibition to him, consolidating his international recognition, and in 1985, the exhibition "Luis Barragán, Architect" was presented at the Tamayo Museum in Mexico City. He received numerous awards, including the National Prize for Science and Arts (1976), the prestigious Pritzker Prize (1980), and the National Architecture Prize (1987).
His work is distinguished by its focus on constructive mass, the transformation of walls into textured three-dimensional elements, and the masterful use of color to manipulate light and evoke emotions. Although he did not seek to establish a formal school, he introduced a rigorous and intuitive architectural approach in Mexico that has influenced subsequent generations of architects.
Globally, Barragán established himself as a leading figure in the 1950s, and his legacy continues to resonate in contemporary architecture, inspiring architects, designers, and artists around the world.
Architectural Complex
La Cuadra is a masterpiece by architect Luis Barragán, built between 1966 and 1968. It was commissioned by Mr. Folke S. Egerstrom (1921-2002), a thoroughbred horse breeder and trainer, who asked the architect to design a family residence with stables. For Barragán, it was an opportunity to develop his personal equestrian hobby, which he had maintained since childhood, on a large scale. The architectural work—considered unique in its kind worldwide—integrates housing, stables, and large equestrian spaces organized around a large walled courtyard with a monumental fountain and a pasture.includes a house, stables, and large equestrian spaces organized around a large walled courtyard with a monumental fountain and a 2.7-hectare pasture of 2.7 hectares.
The central pink wall articulates and separates the private area from the equestrian area, connected by porticos that frame views and pathways. The project combines modern functionalism with evocations of rural architecture and the Mexican landscape, through the use of stone, earth, grass, and a palette of intense colors.
Fundación Romero
The Romero Foundation promotes initiatives in art, architecture, and research with the conviction that cultural innovation can generate social impact. As a non-profit institution, it promotes projects that articulate critical thinking, artistic production, and spatial development. Its programs are organized around two axes, art and culture, and applied research, with an inaugural project on the Mexico-United States border.
