Professional Documents
Culture Documents
In this issue we find respite in the slower connections made by the hands of artists and artisans. We share a
weekend with master-gardener Luciano Giubbilei at Potter’s House in Majorca, experience the inspired frugality
of Enric Mestre’s Valencia workshop, and escape to Basque Country to consider the sculpture of Eduardo Chillida
in the setting most personal to his work. We stop in Mexico City to visit Museo Casa Estudio Diego Rivera
y Frida Kahlo, and head home dreaming about new ways of life practiced by Bijoy Jain at Studio Mumbai.
ENGLISH 162 TO 167 SPANISH 168 TO 171
A Refuge at
Morro Chico
Imagine the most remote place in the world, where civilisation
has barely gained a foothold and where climatic conditions are
extreme. The landscape is one of arid steppes, meadows and
deserts, but also of ice-bound fjords and temperate rainforests.
That place is in the province of Santa Cruz, in southern
Argentina, very close to the border with Chile. That is where
you will find Estancia Morro Chico, a ranch that was founded
more than 130 years ago that today seeks to preserve its
ancestral natural, social and economic heritage by adapting it
not only to the present of Patagonia but to the future.
The story began in 1888 when the Gallie a highly valued, meticulous and efficient
family from Scotland crossed a large stretch team, revive the environment and the con-
of Argentina on horseback, driving the first dition of the land,” they explain. “We rede-
5,000 head of livestock to Santa Cruz. It signed Estancia Morro Chico together with
was the first British migration, mostly com- the ranch employees, contractors and an ar-
prising Scots, to arrive from the Falkland Is- chitectural firm specialised in sustainability,
lands and Punta Arenas, a city in Chilean the Swiss-based Richter Dahl Rocha, to turn
Patagonia, drawn by the ease with which it into a Patagonian ranch for the future.”
land could be acquired under the govern- The work undertaken by RDR – which
ment land grants of the time and the bur- has a second office in Argentina – focused
geoning international market for wool. on redesigning the staff accommodation,
These pioneering families brought prosper- shearing shed, stables and kennel. Facun-
ity to Argentina and Chile, as new breeders do Morando, the project manager, explains
introduced a new sheep breed, the Malvin- their approach: “The client called us to build
era, to the region. a new main residence. Until then, the fami-
Today, the Gallie family continues to rear ly stayed in what is now the guest house dur-
sheep, mostly merino, for their wool, and ing the season. When we went to choose the
they have spent the past few years rethinking site, we saw that the rest of the plot wasn’t
the processes for production and life in the in a good state. So, after consulting with the
area in order to bring greater sustainability Gallies, the project turned into the overall
that will help to preserve the flora and fauna improvement of the ranch.”
of Patagonia. The current generation of the Santa Cruz is a place with a very harsh
family is the fifth to live here. It comprises climate, so sustainability had to be one of
three brothers who love the land and nature the pillars of the project: “Not only did the
and who want to improve living conditions Gallie brothers let us do everything we pro-
for both shearers and animals, and for an- posed, but they wanted to take the project
yone who wants or needs to visit the place. to another level. In these places with climat-
“We aim to do things differently, to take care ic extremes, houses were once built with the
of Patagonia through the sustainable use of intention of protecting them from the wind,
natural resources and the use of clean and re- and a low ridge or hill was sought that could
newable energy. Actions that, together with provide shelter for the dwelling. To ensure
“The story began in 1888 when the Gallie family from Scotland crossed a large stretch of Argentina on
horseback, driving the first 5,000 head of livestock to Santa Cruz. It was the first British migration, mostly
comprising Scots, to arrive from the Falkland Islands and Punta Arenas, a city in Chilean Patagonia”.
MORRO CHICO A Refuge in Patagonia 167
the plot was protected, they would build north, sheltered by the tower, it is made of for a conference on the implementation of
wooden windbreaks that were very effi- wood”, a combination of materials that bal- measures to ensure sustainability and the
cient, but obscured the landscape. “We saw ances the house both in terms of energy effi- optimal use of natural resources.
that, despite the spectacular surroundings, ciency and aesthetics. The former main residence – today a
none of the houses had a very sincere or inter- They refurbished the foremen’s houses, guest house – was covered in insulation and
esting relationship with the outside world. located next to the guest house. These are clad in corrugated iron. In addition to pro-
Therefore, because today’s technology ena- home to the managers of the ranch. They viding aesthetic continuity for the entire
bles us to do so, we decided to put the new also built what they called the ‘Personnel project, this material protects insulation
house on top of the ridge looking out onto Residence’, which is longer than the other much more efficiently than the masonry
the best views.” The location of the future buildings and operates as a hotel during the that formed the exterior walls. However,
main residence on the hill did not respond season. As Facundo explains, “That’s where the masonry was retained inside the house
one hundred per cent to the sustainability re- housing is provided for fifteen or twenty to help keep in the heat. The refurbishment
quirements set, so the actual architecture of days for workers: teams of about ten people turned out to be such a success that even to-
the house would have to provide solutions to who build the barbed-wire fences or brand day it is the house chosen by the mother of
protect the room from the wind and inclem- the sheep, vets...” It is a house that is open to these three brothers when she comes on her
ent weather. “We gave it the shape of a tower anyone who loves nature. The Gallie broth- annual visit, from December to February,
typically found in the Pampas of Argentina. ers’ commitment has led them to collaborate together with a group of friends. A centu-
As a result, from the west, in the direction with organisations that share their values. A ry-old home on a morro chico [small moun-
of the wind, the view of the exterior of the few months ago, in what was like an open- tain] has been transformed into a warm
house is mainly corrugated iron; while to the ing ceremony, they hosted thirty people refuge for the future.
ENGLISH 162 TO 167 SPANISH 168 TO 171
Escrito por Inma Buendía @inma_buendia_ Fotografiado por Cristóbal Palma cristobalpalma.com
Morro Chico morrochico.com.ar
MORRO CHICO Un refugio en Morro Chico 171