La Nación interviewed architect Claudio Vekstein. The meeting took place in his private atelier located at ”Pasaje Santamarina” in the historic quarter of the city: ”this studio has become a depot since I have acquired another one in Vicente López (where he carries out the 2000 Director Plan de la Costa de Vicente López)”, says Vekstein while he draws a number of maquettes from a box. ”Since 1998, when we began to develop this project, up until today, the monument has transformed several times; now its elements are well
defined, and only details have to be taken care of”.
Throughout his career, Vekstein collaborated with architect Amancio Williams, and completed a M.D. in Germany with Enric Miralles and Peter Cook. Later on, he designed the Rose-Museum in Germany, also with Miralles. Not long ago, he finished another monument: the Monument Homage to Amancio Williams, for the End of the Millennium.
– Is there any link between the Monument to the Just and any other project or architectonic work?
– Yes. The architectonical concept for this work came from the ‘Monument for the Death March in Weimar’ (to the nine workers killed in resisting the Kapp Putsch) by Walter Gropius. Also from ‘Change’, a land-art work by Richard Serra which consists of six elevations, each representing different horizons that intersect and extent into the real horizon.
– What did this project mean to you?
– Because I have Jewish roots, even though I do not come from a religious background, I have my own interpretation on the subject. This allows me to reflect on the topic both from inside and from outside, as the monument demonstrates.
It has been a privilege for me to take on this challenge together with architect Vitorgan Maltz. We both come from the same institution and have utilized this project as an opportunity to search for and finally discover the Just; I believe the quest brings each individual to find its own position among them (both the just and the persecuted Jews) at the platform.
– What can you say about the materials employed for construction?
– As a result of their austerity, the different triads (for example the diverse shades of the soil) together with water and light, are a wonderful opportunity to engage with the infinite.
Translation: Ileana Cheszes
