A Bridge with No Name: The Controversial Resignificance of Urban Architectural Heritage from a Gender Perspective in Cuenca (Ecuador)

Heritage

article

María del Cisne Aguirre Ullauri¹  Paula Francisca Rodas Espinoza²  Amanda Paulina García Cordero⁴ 

[1] Unidad Académica de Ingeniería, Industria y Construcción, Universidad Católica de Cuenca;Carrera de Tecnología Superior en Gestión Del Patrimonio Histórico Cultural, Instituto Superior Universitario Tecnológico del Azuay;Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid;Facultad de Geografía e Historia, Universidad Complutense de Madrid

关键词: Mariano Moreno;    Vivas Nos Queremos;    bridge;    urban heritage;    resignification;    cultural value;   

DOI  :  10.3390/heritage6050233

学科分类：医学（综合）

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Urban architectural heritage and its social manifestations are immersed in dynamics beyond their origin and conservation vision. Contemporary society reinterprets, reconfigures and resignifies it according to its own logics of empowerment. In this context, this article addresses the case of a bridge in the Historic Center of Cuenca (Ecuador) known by the names of Mariano Moreno Bridge, La Escalinata Bridge or Vivas Nos Queremos Bridge. It describes its patrimonial situation in terms of its values and its relationship with gender. Because of its social implications, this study is divided into two parts: a bibliographic analysis of the historical evolution of the monument, followed by a discussion of its heritage status, and the presentation of the design, validation and application of a qualitative tool to determine the values associated with the property. This tool is used in a focus group of actors to analyze the feminist activism developed on the bridge between 2020 and 2022. This research shows how cultural heritage can be known, valued and used from an inclusive perspective and how public space can be subject to processes of resignification. This bridge became a non-place, a forgotten and a meaningless site. However, due to the struggle for the vindication of women’s rights and freedom of expression, it has taken on a new meaning, becoming an integral part of the contemporary collective imaginary, regardless of its uncertain nomenclature.

【 授权许可】

CC BY