Legorreta, Ricardo ( 1931 )
Section sketch, UCSF Mission Bay Campus Community Center, San Francisco,
California, Felt marker on paperRicardo Legorreta is a contemporary Mexican architect whose work reflects the bold geometric forms
of the international style, introducing elements of regionalism with his sensitive use of color and nat-
ural light in a fresh approach to architecture.
Legorreta was born in Mexico City and studied architecture at the Universidad Nacional
Autonoma de México, graduating in 1952. He began an apprenticeship with the architect Jose
Villagran Garcia in 1948 and became a partner in 1955. After freelancing for several years, he opened
his own firm in 1963 entitled Legorreta Legorreta. An educator, he has taught at schools of archi-
tecture in such countries as Japan, Argentina, Colombia, Guatemala, England, France, Israel, and
the United States, to name a few. His incredible talent has been recognized with honors and awards
including: two Silver Medals in the First Biennial of Mexican Architecture ( 1990 ); two Gold Medals
in the Second Mexican Biennial of Architecture ( 1992 ); UIA Gold Medal, given in Beijing ( 1999 ); and
the American Institute of Architects Gold Medal ( 2000 ).^19
Legorreta completed buildings of various types and scales, they include: IBM Offices, Mexico
City; Museum of Contemporary Art, Monterrey, Mexico; Children’s Discovery Museum, San Jose,
California; Cathedral in Managua, Nicaragua; San Antonio Library, Texas; and the Chapultepec
Zoo, Mexico City.
This concise image (Figure 8. 16 ) is a sketch for the University of California, San Francisco Mission
Bay Campus Community Center. The building was created to bring the campus community
together with a gymnasium, swimming pools, food services, auditorium, and retail space. Built in
2000 , the structure is organized around a central atrium that ‘will serve as an orienting point, assem-
bling the different spaces and helping the users to establish a visual connection within the building.’
Rendered in ink with yellow and violet felt tip pen, this sketch is a study for the 400 seat audito-
rium. The space has been articulated with a flat roof and a vaulted skylight. The sketch appears to
be an early exploration since the final solution does not show this type of roof. The interior features
blocks of tiered seating on both sides. The right side of the sketch shows the auditorium in eleva-
tion, viewing the front of the barriers. Legorreta has included people for scale; the seated audience
have been suggested with brief dots for heads. On the right is a passageway for ‘backstage’ or exit/
entrance accessibility. On the left side of the sketch is a section representing the rise of the stairs.
The stair’s location has been guided by a sloped line overlaid with a wavy line to replicate steps. The
far edges of the seating boxes are minimally indicated as horizontal marks. In the center of the
sketch stands both a tall central feature and a scale figure on the stage. Lines have been drawn from
the figure’s head to the top tier of the seating and the vaulted ceiling. These arrows suggest
Legorreta’s concern for acoustics and sight lines within the space. A pale yellow arrow waves down
from the ceiling, possibly indicating the admittance of sunlight.
The lines of the sketch are minimal and considered. It appears the single line thickness for exterior
walls was reinforced with a heavier pen. Drawn relatively slowly, the lines undulate slightly with the
movement of the instrument. They suggest Legorreta was holding the various pens quite loosely, con-
centrating on the accuracy of their location. Dots in the dome/vault may indicate texture or a perfor-
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