Las Aradas

Project: Las Aradas
Architect: AgwA

Momentary association

Evelia Macal

Programme: memorial park of the masacre of may 14th 1980

About: The Río Sumpul massacre of May 14 1980 is one of the many massacres of the civilian population of El Salvador perpetrated by the Salvadoran national guard and the paramilitary group ORDEN during the civil war. The architectural project for the memorial site Las Aradas can be read as a threefold action. Firstly, marking the site. The plantation of 200 fire trees that blossom in May during the commemoration creates a large clearing that frames the landscape, the terrain and the existing monument. Secondly, a series of infrastructure is introduced in the new forest, where the measure of the tree grid reappears: a roof for the mass, a series of benches, toilets, etc. Lastly more symbolic elements find their place: the existing monument in the clearing alongside a memorial with all the names of the victims, a statue of Monseñor Romero, marking the edge between the open space and the new forest.
The spatiality of the project is generated by the trees, planted in a 7 x 7 meter grid. This module allows generous spaces in between, protected from the sun. What kind of trees should be used? The colourful fire tree? Existing species, such as the ceiba tree, for specific places? Or should we think of fruit trees, such as orange trees, that will generate a revenue for the community?
Visualizing the names of those who were murdered is a key element for the memorial site. The design of the memorial for the names underlines the difficulty of the absence of a traditional cemetery: a collection of tombs that indicate the dead below them – victims of the massacre are scattered throughout the zone.
The roof allows a space for the church mass.
The structure consists of wood. The slope is oriented towards the clearing, in order to protect the space from the north wind. The superior part cover a long wall decorated with a fresco.