Architecture of Havana

Due to Havana’s almost five hundred-year existence, the city boasts some of the most diverse styles of architecture in the world, from castles built in the late 16th century to modernist present-day high-rises. The present condition of many buildings in Havana has deteriorated since the 1959 Revolution. Numerous collapses have resulted in injuries and deaths due to a lack of maintenance and crumbling structures.

Neoclassical
Neoclassism was introduced into the city in the 1840s, at the time including Gas public lighting in 1848 and the railroad in 1837. In the second half of the 18th century, sugar and coffee production increased rapidly, which became essential in the development of Havana’s most prominent architectural style. Many wealthy Habaneros took their inspiration from the French; this can be seen within the interiors of upper class houses such as the Aldama Palace built in 1844. This is considered the most important neoclassical residential building in Cuba and typifies the design of many houses of this period with portales of neoclassical columns facing open spaces or courtyards.

In 1925 Jean-Claude Nicolas Forestier, the head of urban planning in Paris moved to Havana for five years to collaborate with architects and landscape designers. In the master planning of the city his aim was to create a harmonic balance between the classical built form and the tropical landscape. He embraced and connected the city’s road networks while accentuating prominent landmarks. His influence has left a huge mark on Havana although many of his ideas were cut short by the great depression in 1929. During the first decades of the 20th century Havana expanded more rapidly than at any time during its history. Great wealth prompted architectural styles to be influenced from abroad. The peak of Neoclassicism came with the construction of the Vedado district (begun in 1859). This whole neighborhood is littered with set back well-proportioned buildings.

Colonial and Baroque
Riches were brought from the colonialists into and through Havana as it was a key transshipment point between the new world and old world. As a result, Havana was the most heavily fortified city in the Americas. Most examples of early architecture can be seen in military fortifications such as La Fortaleza de San Carlos de la Cabana (1558–1577) designed by Battista Antonelli and the Castillo del Morro (1589–1630). This sits at the entrance of Havana Bay and provides an insight into the supremacy and wealth at that time.

Old Havana was also protected by a defensive wall begun in 1674 but had already overgrown its boundaries when it was completed in 1767, becoming the new neighbourhood of Centro Habana. The influence from different styles and cultures can be seen in Havana’s colonial architecture, with a diverse range of Moorish architecture, Spanish, Italian, Greek and Roman. The San Carlos and San Ambrosio Seminary (18th century) is a good example of early Spanish influenced architecture. The Havana cathedral (1748–1777) dominating the Plaza de la Catedral (1749) is the best example of Cuban Baroque. Surrounding it are the former palaces of the Count de Casa-Bayona (1720–1746) Marquis de Arcos (1746) and the Marquis de Aguas Claras (1751–1775).

The influence of different styles and cultures can be seen in the colonial architecture of Havana, with a diverse range of Moors, Spanish, Italian, Greek and Roman. The Convent of Santa Clara (1638) is a good example of the Spanish Baroque that influenced the architecture. His great hall looks look like an inverted ship and show the skill of artisans of the time. The Cathedral of Havana (1748-1777) overlooking the Plaza de la Catedral (1749) is the best example of Cuban Baroque. Surrounding it are the palaces of the Counts of Casa-Bayona (1720-1746) Marqueses de Arcos (1746) and the Marquises of Aguas Claras (1751-1775).

Art Deco and Eclectic
The first echoes of the Art Deco movement in Havana started in 1927, in the residential area of Miramar. The Edificio Bacardi (1930) is thought to be the best example of Art-deco architecture in the city and first tall Art Deco building as well, followed by the Hotel Nacional de Cuba (1930) and The Lopez Serrano building built in 1932 by Ricardo Mira inspired by the Rockefeller Center in New York City. The year 1928 marked the beginning of the reaction against the Spanish Renaissance style architecture, Art Deco started in the lush and wealthy suburbs of Miramar, Marianao, and Vedado.

The city’s eclectic architectural sights begins in Centro Habana. The Central Railway Terminal (1912), and the Museum of the Revolution (1920) are example of Eclectic architecture.

The López-Serrano building was built in 1932 by Ricardo Mira, the first high-rise building in Cuba, inspired by the Rockefeller Center in New York. His influence can be seen in many buildings in Miami and Los Angeles.

The Bacardí Building (1930) is one of the largest buildings in Havana and the best example of Art Deco. Located on a small hill that overlooks the entrance to the Bay of Havana, there is the National Hotel, built in 1929-30 through an agreement between the Cuban government and the United States.

Hotel Ambos Mundos, eclectic style (early twentieth century).
However, there are important works that have a different style, emerged after the triumph of the revolution. The Palace of Conventions is a sample of the combination of colonial architecture and the influence of the Soviet Union. From 1995, hotels such as the Meliá Cohiba, the Panorama, the Meliá Habana and the Rampa were built, characterized by their straight lines and walls of glass, metal, concrete and adorned with hanging plants.

Modernism
Many high-rise office buildings, and apartment complexes, along with some hotels built in the 1950s dramatically altered the skyline. Modernism, therefore, transformed much of the city and is known its individual buildings of high quality rather than its larger key buildings. Examples of the latter are Habana Libre (1958), which before the revolution was the Havana Hilton Hotel and La Rampa movie theater (1955).

Famous architects such as Walter Gropius, Richard Neutra and Oscar Niemeyer all passed through the city, while strong influences can be seen in Havana at this time from Le Corbusier and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. The Edificio Focsa (1956) represents Havana’s economic dominance at the time. This 35-story complex was conceived and based on Corbusian ideas of a self-contained city within a city. It contained 400 apartments, garages, a school, a supermarket, and restaurant on the top floor. This was the tallest concrete structure in the world at the time (using no steel frame) and the ultimate symbol of luxury and excess. The Havana Riviera Hotel (1957) designed by Irving Feldman, a twenty-one-story edifice, when it opened, the Riviera was the largest purpose-built casino-hotel in Cuba or anywhere in the world, outside Las Vegas (the Havana Hilton (1958) surpassed its size a year later).

The Focsa Building (1956), by the Spanish architect Martín Domínguez, also located in El Vedado, represents the peak of the development of the buildings then called horizontal property. This complex of 39 levels was conceived and based on the ideas of Le Corbusier of an autonomous city within a city. It had 400 apartments, garages, a school, a supermarket, and restaurants at the top. This was the highest reinforced concrete structure in the world at that time (not using any steel frame).

The Hotel Riviera (1957) designed by Irving Feldman, standing out on the Malecón in Havana, was another angular and futuristic building figure in the Vedado area, impressive for its era. When it opened, the Riviera was the largest Casino-hotel in Cuba or anywhere in the world, outside Las Vegas. The Hotel Habana Hilton (today Habana Libre), in 1958, surpassed in size all the previous hotels in just one year.

Second half of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century
There is a very definite limit between the evolution of Havana architecture before and after 1959. From that date to the present, it has been characterized by a continuous deterioration and by the absence of a criterion of long-term harmony. The following more or less specific events should be highlighted at this stage:

The construction of distributions and the movement of construction microbrigades since 1960. The construction of urbanizations in various areas of Havana have been carried out in the Soviet style, making them look like they are not true, real ghettos and instead of neighborhoods in Havana, they seem districts of Kiev or Moscow. The most significant example is the city of Alamar. In addition, the distributions of Alberro, San Agustín, Antonio Guiteras, Eléctrico and others similar have been built with this style. In this sense, the construction of secondary and pre-university institutes in the countryside stands out, such as the more than twenty buildings that make up the Lenin Vocational School in Arroyo Naranjo.

The atypical construction of the embassy of the Soviet Union on the Fifth Avenue of Beach, designed by Alexander G. Rochegov.

The construction of the Western Scientific Pole. Between the 1980s and the 1990s several buildings were built in the municipality of Playa, which made up the largest scientific community in the country.

The reconstruction of Old Havana. Since the end of the 1980s, the Office of the Historian of Havana and its associated companies have promoted, financed and executed the reconstruction of the oldest and most significant parts of the Villa, trying to respect the original construction as much as possible and seeking harmony between habitability and tourist attraction.

The intensive construction of hotels since the early 1990s in the municipalities of greatest tourist interest among which stand out the Meliá Cohiba of El Vedado, the Meliá Habana de Playa, the Santa Isabel hotels and Parque Central in Old Havana, among others Many. It also highlights the construction of the Miramar Trade Center and the expansion of the José Martí Airport.

Landmarks and historical centres
Habana Vieja: contains the core of the original city of Havana. It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Plaza Vieja: a plaza in Old Havana, it was the site of executions, processions, bullfights, and fiestas.
Fortress San Carlos de la Cabaña, a fortress located on the east side of the Havana bay, La Cabaña is the most impressive fortress from colonial times, particularly its walls constructed at the end of the 18th century.
El Capitolio Nacional: built in 1929 as the Senate and House of Representatives, the colossal building is recognizable by its dome which dominates the city’s skyline. Inside stands the third largest indoor statue in the world, La Estatua de la República. Nowadays, the Cuban Academy of Sciences headquarters and the Museo Nacional de Historia Natural (the National Museum of Natural History) has its venue within the building and contains the largest natural history collection in the country.
El Morro Castle: is a fortress guarding the entrance to Havana bay; Morro Castle was built because of the threat to the harbor from pirates.
Fortress San Salvador de la Punta: a small fortress built in the 16th century, at the western entry point to the Havana harbour, it played a crucial role in the defence of Havana during the initial centuries of colonisation. It houses some twenty old guns and military antiques.
Christ of Havana: Havana’s 20-meter (66 ft) marble statue of Christ (1958) blesses the city from the east hillside of the bay, much like the famous Cristo Redentor in Rio de Janeiro.
The Great Theatre of Havana: is an opera house famous particularly for the National Ballet of Cuba, it sometimes hosts performances by the National Opera. The theater is also known as concert hall, García Lorca, the biggest in Cuba.
The Malecon/Sea wall: is the avenue that runs along the north coast of the city, beside the seawall. The Malecón is the most popular avenue of Havana, it is known for its sunsets.
Hotel Nacional de Cuba: an Art Deco National Hotel famous in the 1950s as a gambling and entertainment complex.
Museo de la Revolución: located in the former Presidential Palace, with the yacht Granma on display behind the museum.
Necrópolis Cristóbal Colón: a cemetery and open-air museum, it is one of the most famous cemeteries in Latin America, known for its beauty and magnificence. The cemetery was built in 1876 and has nearly one million tombs. Some gravestones are decorated with sculpture by Ramos Blancos, among others.

Source From Wikipedia