Sport and tradition. Fronton Mexico Remodelling by Moyao Arquitectos

Description of project by Moyao Arquitectos

The walls of the Frontón México, although aged, stand out as a faithful example of art deco architecture in Mexico. It was designed by architects Teodoro Kinhard and Joaquín Capilla. It has a famous pan coupé façade, with the name of the building engraved on it, and successive rectilinear and sober planes, as well as octagonal windows. It has various reliefs in the Art Deco style.

The front of the pediment was made with marble leftover from the Palace of Fine Arts. The first stone of the building was laid in 1928 and it was Emilio Portes Gil who inaugurated it on May 10, 1929, becoming over the decades a popular site in the capital. In its heyday, it boasted of being "the palace of Basque pelota", as it hosted several world championships. It was also famous for hosting martial arts competitions and the national boxing championship Cinturón de Oro, as well as being the venue for the boxing competitions in the 1968 Olympics.

The rescue of the building was not based on an intervention for its architectural conservation in a conventional way, as over time, it has become part of a wider strategy focused on urban regeneration and sustainability. However, the processes of conservation and, where appropriate, architectural restoration were carried out with the aim of adaptive reuse of the building, which had been abandoned to its fate for several years. In this case, the original use of the building was largely reinstated, to integrally fit out all the modern facilities with state-of-the-art technology, provide the spaces with the safety and comfort conditions required in these new times.

The various modern systems that were incorporated into the building, not having existed originally, had to be adapted to the limited existing conditions, making decisions that avoided affecting the original architectural elements as much as possible. In this sense, slight modifications had to be made to provide sufficient space in the ceilings to allow for the location of the air conditioning ducts. The plaster friezes with classical motifs were removed and repositioned a few centimeters lower so that they would not be obstructed by the ducts.

The installation of the air-conditioning machines, which by technical specification must be in the open air, was placed on the roof, where a partition was built so that the equipment could not be seen. For the design of this canopy, the different viewing angles from different points of the square were taken into consideration to ensure that the equipment was concealed as much as possible. Concerning other required installations, passages for electrical, voice, and data cables were provided and the respective equipment was concealed. To meet the regulatory requirements with out affecting the building spatially, multiple pieces of equipment were placed underground, as well as cisterns for drinking water and recycling.
 
There is no doubt that the Frontón México, as an artistic heritage monument, offers us a valuable glimpse into the past through its composition, while its solid presence lends its character to the urban image of the square in which it is located. The intervention project carried out for this building dating from the first third of the 20th century was conceived with the firm intention of fully respecting the architectural characteristics representative of the period of its construction.

Based on a scientific approach, specialized studies were carried out to determine the original conditions of the building. Additions and additions alien to the monument were detected and eliminated, and the original elements were identified for restoration and reintegration into the building. This treatment of recovery of original values, based on an integral vision of the conservation project of the building, has been extended in such a way that the urban context is incorporated into the rehabilitation process. The entire restoration process was designed and supervised by architect Pepe Moyao, his studio, and a team of architects and engineers.