Browsing by Author "Zapata Montalvo, Luis Fernando"

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    Furniture and Other Household Objects as Integrative Elements of the Indigenous House in East Mexico
    (Editorial Universidad de Granada / Green Lines Institute for Sustainable Development, 2018-06-15) Zapata Montalvo, Luis Fernando
    The Papaloapan River in East Mexico is a rich region historically, culturally and naturally. These characteristics are also reflected in the region’s vernacular architecture. This fascination with the built environment led me to carry out research on the indigenous houses there, based on the historical, physical and cultural evidence that still exists in most of these indigenous communities, which is manifest in the architecture, the simplicity of the forms of the houses, the construction of the spaces and even the furniture arrangements and other household items. The idea of observing furniture and household objects as integrative elements of the vernacular house is discussed by Amos Rapoport as “an approach to understand the link be-tween human behaviour and house form”, and brings up the question of “how much one can tell from an examination of artefacts, when no written records exist, and when there may not even be a detailed knowledge of the way of life, the only evidence being the object, building, or settlement itself”. With this idea in mind, I went to live with the Mazatec people settled along the Papaloapan River for a total of six months between 2012 and 2013, an experience which allowed me to understand how the design of their houses are grounded in many tradi-tions. Therefore, one part of the research primarily involved: understanding the relationship between the Mazatec people and their dwellings and the influence that furniture arrangements has over the design and construction of their houses.
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    "Hey amigo! do you want to go on a trip? do you want mushrooms?"
    (Intellect Journals, 2017-03-01) Zapata Montalvo, Luis Fernando
    The Mazatec people from the northern highlands of the Mexican State of Oaxaca are known for the syncretism of their religion, which combines pre-Hispanic culture and Catholic religion introduced with Spanish colonization in the sixteenth century. Nowadays, Mazatec religious practices are characterized by ritual ceremonies revolving around the religious spirit of the people and their cosmology. They are known for using mushrooms and other hallucinogenic plants to connect them with the world of their gods. The sacredness of these mushrooms is such a large and complex topic that no attempt at scientific explanation seems to solve all of the magical mysteries of the Mazatec universe. However, my introduction to it began in 2011 when I was carrying out fieldwork among the Mazatec people as part of my Ph.D. studies in architecture. This article is a direct account of an experience I had that seems to go beyond rational parameters; to a place where the spiritual and magical predominate; to a world in which healers and shamans eat sacred mushrooms in order to perform ceremonial rituals to heal people.
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    Post-occupancy evaluation of architecturally-designed low-income housing in Ahmadabad, India
    (2019-07-22) Sharmin, Tania; Bradbury, Simon; Ahmad, Taki; Zapata Montalvo, Luis Fernando
    This paper presents post-occupancy evaluation of low-income houses that have been built through the DMU: Square Mile India Programme in Ahmedabad, India. Questionnaire and interviews were conducted which elicited information on respondents’ socio-cultural and environmental experiences in the new houses compared to the existing dwellings in the community. Findings include: 1. increased expectations and higher demands for space and facilities in the new houses, 2. discontent with integrated courtyard/ open spaces, 3. prioritising flood protection over environmental quality and thermal comfort conditions in the existing houses and 4. Significant change in the perception of social status of families in the new homes. The findings highlight residents’ need for adequate sleeping area, thermal comfort, safety from animals and security. These aspects must be critically considered in future design of similar houses. The paper produces empirical evidence on users’ perception that will provide better knowledge and understanding to the designer and policy-makers to identify important factors to improve residents’ quality of life in a low-income housing context.
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    Ritualized Architecture in East Mexico
    (Green Lines Institute for Sustainable Development, 2014-03-01) Zapata Montalvo, Luis Fernando
    The Papaloapan River in East Mexico is a rich region historically, culturally and naturally. These characteristics are also reflected in the region’s vernacular architecture. This fascination with the built environment led me to carry out research for my PhD on the indigenous houses there, based on the historical, physical and cultural evidence that still exists in most of these indigenous communities, which is manifest in the architecture, the simplicity of the forms of the houses and the construction of the spaces. In 2012 and 2013 I lived with the Mazatec people along the Papaloapan River for a total of six months, an experience which allowed me to understand how the design and construction of their houses are grounded in many traditions. Therefore, the research for my PhD primarily involves: (1) understanding the relationship between the Mazatec people and their dwellings; and (2) recording the ceremonial rites associated with the design and construction of their houses.
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    SO CLOSE YET SO FAR: DIVIDED CONTEXTS ON THE MEXICO-GUATEMALA BORDER
    (Astragalo, 2022-01) Zapata Montalvo, Luis Fernando
    The border between Mexico and Guatemala results from the geopolitical confluence of two countries with different priorities, generating different ways of organization in the lives of its inhabitants and the people who transit through this zone. This context has created conditions of interaction on what each country consider legal, illegal and punishable, leading to several interpretations of the migratory phenomena. We are facing real contexts that adopt the transit of human beings. Situations that are possible and give meaning to the lives of many people in divided contexts. This article presents an overview of two cross-border locations between Mexico and Guatemala that intends to describe the border zone and the mobility of people as a social phenomenon. What motivates people to move between both countries? and what are the relationships and decisions linked to someone or something being able to move and decide to do so? even more when this mobility means the crossing of a politically delimited border? are some of the questions raised in this article. To respond to the questions raised, I carried out a qualitative approach, which will also allow achieving a better understanding of the dynamics of people who live in these places.