Amereida and Ciudad Abierta

literature and architecture in an unusual marriage

Abstract

Amereida is an epic poem that literally emerged from a collective journey by van, which began on July 3, 1965. Involving both Latin American and European artists, the journey was documented by its participants to form a “lived poem”, a poetic experience unfolding on the road. Unlike the European conquistadors, the participants sought to recognize the “inner sea” of the Americas, those vast, sparsely populated spaces that, through this endeavor, would come to define a genuine identity for countries whose previous, mythical character had been little more than an ill-founded importation of European myths. Ciudad Abierta, meanwhile, is an architectural complex located in Ritoque, Chile, comprising conceptually innovative structures, including dwellings and even a cemetery. Set against the backdrop of the Pacific Ocean, the site is surrounded by lush, vibrant landscapes. Its creation in the late 1960s, inspired by Amereida, involved faculty and students from the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso. Its aesthetic engages with symbolism, Dadaism, and surrealism, as well as a spatial philosophy that sought to integrate poetry with architecture, and life with study and work. To this day, architecture students from the university continue to undertake journeys that replicate the original expedition that gave rise to Amereida. In this article, I will demonstrate how Amereida and Ciudad Abierta constitute one of the most unusual and enduring unions in the history of the arts. To do so, I will draw upon the work of figures such as Alberto Cruz Covarrubias, Ana Asensio, Roberto Segre, Silvia Cordero, Victoria Jolly and Milton Santos, while also aligning the approach with Walter Mignolo’s decolonial thought.

Submission: Jul 25, 2026 ⊶ Accepted: Sep 21, 2026