The Arrow of Villanueva in Caracas

Church of Our Lady of the Assumption

Abstract

In 1957, Carlos Raúl Villanueva planned the church that would serve a sector of the urban development known today as «23 de Enero», built in Caracas to house 60,000 inhabitants. Designed by Villanueva with the assistance of Juan Pedro Posani, the church was consecrated to Our Lady of the Assumption and later elevated to a parish in 1963. Although it has undergone several renovations, the building retains its original character. It has an ascending form: viewed from the atrium to the presbytery, the nave begins with ample space and dim lighting, narrowing towards the main altar, while the rough walls converge and rise to the highest and most illuminated point, crowned by the skylight and the bell tower. This church is preceded by three earlier projects, and its expressionistic and sensory character is reflected in some spaces of the University City of Caracas. The conceptual foundation of this work is found in Villanueva’s Notas docentes, in which he expresses, following the historical thread, that every church «is an arrow». In conclusion, this figure is understood as a double synthesis: God and man are united by an arrow, and this, in turn, indicates the way to design churches.