Eladio Dieste | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1 December 1917 |
| Died | 20 July 2000 (aged 82) |
| Nationality | Uruguayan |
| Occupation | Architect |
Eladio Dieste (December 1, 1917 – July 29, 2000) was a Uruguayan engineer who made his reputation by building a range of structures from grain silos, factory sheds, markets and churches, most of them in Uruguay and all of exceptional elegance.
Dieste was born in Artigas department. His uncle was the Spanish poet Rafael Dieste.
A particular innovation was his Gaussian vault, a thin-shell structure for roofs in single-thickness brick, that derives its stiffness and strength from a double curvature catenary arch form that resists buckling failure.[1]
There were several architects and engineers in South and Latin America who were working in the modernist language, such as Guillermo Gonzalez Zuleta in Colombia, Carlos Raúl Villanueva in Venezuela and Félix Candela in Mexico, who brought architecture and structural engineering into close proximity, especially when undertaking humble commissions. His buildings were mostly roofed with thin shell vaults constructed of brick and ceramic tiles. These forms were cheaper than reinforced concrete, and didn't require ribs and beams. In developing this approach, even in comparison with modernists the world over, he was an innovator.[2]
Dieste is quoted about his use of materials and structure:
With regard to structure Dieste stated:
Many of the techniques that he developed to achieve these forms, such as pre-stressing of brickwork and moveable formworks, were in advance of contemporary techniques in the developed world.
He died, aged 82, in Montevideo.
