INTBAU Mexico
The International Network for Traditional Building, Architecture & Urbanism
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Five prominent Mexican architects of contemporary classicism
Isaac Tame, Doctor in history
A necessary definition
What is being referred to when the term contemporary classicism is used? Well, there are elements to assert that neoclassical architecture, which originated in the 18th century, has not concluded and that it endures to this day through its second historical stage: that of the so-called eclecticism of historicist revivals.
This second stage of the Neoclassical style, which follows a first stage of pure Neoclassicism, is characterized by combining the Neoclassical language, in an eclectic stance, with one or several other languages taken from the classical architectural past, such as Romanesque, Gothic, Byzantine, Moorish, Renaissance, Baroque, among many others.
This is how it is referred to, in this second stage of the Neoclassical period, as neo-Romanesque, neo-Gothic, neo-Byzantine, neo-Moorish, neo-Renaissance, neo-Baroque, as appropriate.
The persistence of classical architecture
That is to say, it is verifiable that, despite the emergence of modern taste architecture, primarily developed at the Bauhaus, and its apparent triumph, contemporary classical architecture still has those who request to have it designed and built in that style.
The author of this article has created a timeline, with at least one first-order example of contemporary classical-style architecture per year, from 1919 (the birth of the Bauhaus) to 2025. In this study, the term first order refers not to the size of a building (even guardhouses or multi-purpose halls are documented) but to its artistic and esthetic quality.
This timeline, with over 220 case studies, showcases examples from all over the world (not just Europe and America), including countries from Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, the Indian subcontinent, the Far East, and Oceania.
Five Mexican architects
The case of Mexico illustrates this phenomenon well, as it has presented, since the first quarter of the 20th century, and up to the present day, a remarkable number of architects who have built and continue to build contemporary classical architecture.
However, five of them stand out, which are the subject of this article. These architects who stand out from the others are Vicente Mendiola Quezada (1900-1993), Manuel Caco Parra Mercado (1911-1997), Arnold (Noldi) Schreck (1921-2009), José Luis Ezquerra de la Colina (1934-2016), and Jorge Loyzaga González (born in 1938, still active).
Below is a brief overview of each of them, indicating their main constructed works.
1. Mendiola, the architect with a Renaissance spirit
Vicente Mendiola Quezada (1900-1993) was born in Chalco and spent his childhood in El Oro, State of Mexico, before moving to Toluca to complete his high school education. He studied architecture at the Academy of San Carlos in Mexico City, where he also trained in plastic arts under the tutelage of masters such as Saturnino Herrán.
This dual education influenced his career, standing out as an architect, painter, and sculptor. His life was marked by a passion for teaching, which he developed as a professor at the National University (UNAM). He also taught at the Mexican School of Architecture at La Salle University in the capital. He received the National Arts Award.
While it has Art Deco works, such as the Police Inspection and Fire Station (1928), the Teléfonos de México building (1929), or the Fuente de Petróleos (1952), its eclecticism always led it back to designing with classical elements (especially of neorenaissance esthetics) and colonial styles adapted to modern construction.
This made him distance himself from Juan O'Gorman and José Villagrán. The list of his works is enormous, but some of the greatest examples of contemporary classicism in the country stand out, so fashionable in his time and later so criticized, such as the Fountain of the Diana Cazadora (1938), the Federal Palace of Toluca (1948), the Municipal Palace of Guadalajara (1952), and the facade and completion works of the Cathedral of Toluca (1979).
He also left an artistic legacy of hundreds of watercolors and small sculptures that he rarely sold, preferring to keep them or give them to his close ones.
Above, the Government Palace in Toluca; below, the Government Palace in Guadalajara, the La Diana fountain, and the Toluca Cathedral.
2. Caco Parra, the architect of San Ángel and Coyoacán
Manuel Parra Mercado (1911-1997), nicknamed by his friends as Caco Parra, was the nephew of Antonio Rivas Mercado, one of the main (neoclassical) architects of the Porfirio Díaz era. He studied architecture at the Academy of San Carlos, albeit late, enrolling at the age of 28.
In his work, he reused pieces from the demolitions of old mansions, reinterpreting them, either in facade details or in new spaces. He was, in addition to being an architect, an interior and furniture designer, sculptor, ceramist, film set designer, and painter. He mostly built in Mexico City, as well as in Guanajuato, Nuevo León, Morelos, Guerrero, Veracruz, and in California, United States. He forged a unique and characteristic style, marked by the reinterpretation of the architecture of Mexican colonial and Porfirio haciendas, but this time in an urban environment like that of the capital. The large number of houses and other projects he built in the neighborhoods of Coyoacán and San Ángel make him one of the main figures responsible for these areas remaining more or less cohesive in style to this day.
That is to say, his work harmoniously integrated with the landscape, respecting the architectural and natural characteristics of the surroundings. Parra was one of the main architects who advocated for an architecture respectful of history and the social environment in which it developed: with Mexican popular tradition in general, something that is reflected both in his designs and in his choice of materials, shapes, and colors. At the time, he was misunderstood by a guild that was already predominantly aligned with modern architectural tastes. However, he never lacked clients, as he knew how to create spaces for them that offer intimacy and warmth, very good acoustics, and interesting plays of light, shadows, and twilight, to the point that he is considered a cult architect. He continued with the tradition of furniture called colonial, but with a personal style that he called, in English, early Mexican handmade furniture.
Exteriors and interiors of the house of the Mexican filmmaker and actor Emilio Indio Fernández in Coyoacán, Mexico City. It was built between 1946 and 1986.
3. Schreck, the architect of the international jet set
Arnold (Noldi) Schreck (1921-2009) was a Russian-Swiss-Mexican architect born in Yakutsk, Russia, where his mother was a member of an aristocratic family and his father, who was Swiss, worked as a naval engineer in Siberia. With the Russian Revolution, his family suffered severe economic losses, and his mother, once widowed, moved with little Arnold to live with the paternal family in Switzerland.
He studied interior design in Zurich. He worked in Italy, France, and the United Kingdom before arriving in the United States, where he worked as a set designer in Hollywood. In Beverly Hills, he was captivated by the Californian colonial style and decided he should dedicate himself to architecture. He began to build in this style, first in the United States and later also in Mexico, where he established his office in Zona Rosa, a tourist area of the capital.
In 1966, Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, who was acting as a real estate developer in Spain, came to seek him out. While traveling through Cabo San Lucas and Acapulco, he had stayed in hotels built by him. He asked Shreck to design something for the urban complex that was then being planned, known as Marbella Club on the Costa del Sol.
Once in Spain, Schreck met José Banús, a close friend of the dictator Francisco Franco. The architect also designed the so-called Puerto Banús for his new client. This port became a destination visited by people from all over the world, especially from Europe, the Middle East, and the United States. Throughout his career, Schreck observed like few the relationship between architecture and the culture of mass consumption, understanding that the esthetics of luxury could perfectly integrate with the functionality of urban and tourist spaces.
His approach to architectural design was often a meeting point between modernity, architectural and urban tradition, and aspiration, at the height of the so-called jet set culture, linked to travel, luxury, and exclusive social life. The architecture he developed during this period was designed to meet the needs of a cosmopolitan elite, seeking elegance, sophistication, and comfort. Puerto Banús is, to this day, an example of it.
Various views of Puerto Banús, in the district of Nueva Andalucía, Marbella, province of Málaga, Spain. Opened in 1970.
4. Ezquerra, the Lejanista architect
José Luis Ezquerra de la Colina (1934-2016) was born in Santander, Spain. In 1946, his family emigrated to Mexico and settled in Puebla, where he completed his secondary and preparatory education. At the age of 18, he moved to the capital to study architecture at the National University (UNAM). At the age of 18, he moved to the capital to study architecture at the National University (UNAM).
His development as an architect was marked by a disillusionment with established forms, which led him to become interested in exploring new relationships with space and materials. He is recognized for his inclination toward a more sensitive and philosophical architecture, which moved away from the strict pragmatism of the architecture that was dominant at the time.
His constant criticism of the aridity and lack of originality increasingly displayed by modern taste architecture earned him numerous enemies, and it even led to his dismissal as a professor at one of the main private universities in the metropolitan area of Mexico City.
On the other hand, he always cultivated a taste for classical architecture, even developing a unique style he called "lejanismo," which can be defined as an eclectic mix between the revival of proto-rationalist neoclassicism, Mudejar, and the traditional architecture of the Greek islands.
His main work was the hotel complex on Las Hadas beach, in Manzanillo, Colima. In addition to Mexico, he worked on projects in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. He left a legacy rooted in the reflection on architecture as a means to connect human beings with their natural and spiritual environments.
His work continues to be a source of inspiration for those who seek architecture that is not only modern but also sensitive and respectful of the cultural and geographical context.
Various views of the Las Hadas complex in Manzanillo, Colima, Mexico. It opened its doors in 1974.
5. Loyzaga, the architect who preserves traditions
Jorge Loyzaga González was born in 1938. He is an artist whose work is characterized by a deep respect for and preservation of Mexican architectural traditions. Throughout his career, he has maintained an approach that merges the principles of functionality with a concern for preserving the cultural identity of the country. Loyzaga has been a staunch advocate for architecture that is rooted in the local context, using traditional materials and adapting construction techniques that allow his projects to harmoniously engage with the environment and history.
Influenced by the legacy of the great masters of classical architecture, as well as colonial and vernacular Mexican architecture, Loyzaga dedicated himself to researching and reinterpreting traditional architectural elements, seeking ways to bring them to the present without losing sight of their cultural roots. His projects are not only a formal exercise in stylistic virtuosity but also a way to recover the know-how of past generations. This concern for traditional techniques is manifested when he implements contemporary solutions such as large windows that allow natural light to enter, or the use of vegetation to create a harmonious space between the house and nature.
This balance between tradition and modernity is a constant in his work. He has been a staunch advocate for the need for contemporary architects to draw inspiration from their cultural context, so as not to lose sight of the identity that defines a people. Today, Jorge Loyzaga remains a reference in Mexican architecture, with a body of work that continues to be a source of inspiration for those who believe in the importance of tradition and identity in architecture. His legacy is that of an architect who not only seeks to innovate but also to preserve the best of the past for future generations. In his office, which he opened in 1968, he now works alongside his two daughters, Sophia Alexandra and Anna Fernanda Loyzaga Palm. They have works in Mexico, the United States, and Europe.
A selection of various built projects by the firm Loyzaga, chosen from the more than 500 they have completed.
Conclusion
These five architects presented here are tangible proof that the taste for contemporary classical architecture persists in Mexico. These five architects clearly demonstrate how the execution of first-rate examples of this type of building has continued, from the 1920s, when rationalist architecture arrived in Mexico, to the present day. The five have had an extremely distinguished career, each with a large amount of built work.
In a future installment, we will discuss two other categories of architects of the contemporary classical style in Mexico. On one hand, architects who had either a single major work in this style, or a few, and then went on to dedicate themselves to modern architecture.
On the other hand, builders (not always architects) who, although they do not stand out for one or more emblematic projects, did execute a significant number of creations in two historicist variants that remain to this day in the heart and memory of Mexicans: in general, the so-called neocolonial style and, in particular, its main variant, called the Californian colonial style.
Sources
Cruz Hernández, Graciela. Vicente Mendiola Quezada. Instituto de Investigaciones Históricas, Económicas, Políticas y Sociales. 7 de noviembre de 2018
Manuel Parra: Arquitecto. Revista Artes de México. Primera edición. 1 de mayo de 2008.
Supo el suizo Noldi Schreck dejar distintiva huella en el mundo. HispaVista. 31 de enero de 2011.
Ezquerra, Arquitectura Lejanista: Del Mudejarismo a la Modernidad. Primera edición. Editorial Coedi Mex. 2008.
Jorge Loyzaga: Classical and Harmonic Proportions. Rizzoli. New York. 2023.
Tame, Isaac. La arquitectura tradicional de Occidente, del “triunfo” de la Bauhaus a nuestros días. Universidad Iberoamericana. 2023.
Tame, Isaac. La persistencia de la arquitectura tradicional de Occidente. Universidad Iberoamericana. 2025.