Contemporary Mexican architecture represents a compelling fusion of traditional techniques and modern innovation, creating a distinctive architectural language that responds to the country's diverse landscapes and rich cultural heritage. Through the lens of renowned architectural photographer Edmund Sumner, this dynamic evolution is captured in Jonathan Bell's book "Casa Mexicana," which showcases how Mexican architects are moving beyond vibrant color palettes toward a more nuanced, material-based expression that honors both history and progress.
Mexico's architectural landscape is shaped by its status as the world's fifth most biodiverse country, where architects must respond to vast natural environments, varied climates, and deep cultural traditions within a territory marked by striking contrasts. This architecture embodies a visible duality, simultaneously representing exclusivity while serving as a catalyst for social transformation. The influence of colonial courtyards, hacienda terraces, indigenous structures, and modern ideals inspired by Le Corbusier, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Luis Barragán continues to shape the evolution of Mexican housing today.
London-based architectural photographer Edmund Sumner's work featured in "Casa Mexicana" reveals layered narratives of place and the convergence of tradition and innovation embedded in contemporary Mexican practice. His photographs span from Tadao Ando's Casa Wabi in Oaxaca to Rafael Pardo Arquitectos' Zoncuantla Apartments in Xalapa, capturing the subtle radicalism of modern Mexican architecture. Sumner's journey into Mexican architecture began serendipitously in 2012 when collaborator Tadao Ando invited him to photograph two projects in Monterrey, revealing unexpected parallels between Ando's philosophy and contemporary Mexican design.
"Mexican architecture is boldly experimental yet deeply contextual - it bridges Mexico's heritage with a progressive, socially conscious design language," Sumner explains. He notes the similarities between Ando's work and Mexican architecture, particularly in their use of calm palettes, mastery of light, and deep respect for material honesty. What distinguishes Mexican work is not a desire to impress through scale or spectacle, but rather an unostentatious sophistication - a quiet confidence that is both grounded in tradition and forward-looking.
The connection between Mexican housing and its surrounding landscape and cultural heritage is profound and multifaceted. Mexico's rich geography encompasses not only diverse physical terrain but also complex social and cultural layers. The most compelling housing projects complement rather than compete with their surroundings, where architecture becomes an extension of terrain, climate, and local traditions. Courtyards, patios, and open-air thresholds recall pre-Hispanic and colonial spatial logics, while materials like adobe, volcanic stone, and local brick tie built forms directly to the land.
Vernacular materials and techniques continue to play a vital role in contemporary Mexican architecture, with traditional elements being adapted to meet current needs. Rammed earth and Chukum exemplify Mexican architecture's ability to honor the past while looking forward. Contemporary architects reinterpret these traditional materials with modern engineering and design, creating buildings that are both authentic and innovative. HW Studio's vaulted concrete home near Morelia illustrates this approach beautifully, with textured, curving forms that evoke the tactility of earth and stone while embracing modern aesthetics.
Material and formal experimentation in Mexican domestic architecture allows architects to respond to the country's diverse climates and topographies while embracing a more playful approach to design. Playfulness - manifested through unexpected spatial arrangements, bold material combinations, and inventive forms - has become central to the modern home. This reflects both cultural openness to creativity and a desire to craft spaces that delight, surprise, and adapt to everyday life. By balancing contextual sensitivity with imaginative expression, these homes function effectively while remaining deeply rooted in their environment and imbued with joy and discovery.
Sumner emphasizes the crucial role of architectural photography in capturing and inspiring new construction techniques and solutions. "Architects and architectural photographers are fundamentally artists, each shaping perception through their craft," he explains. Photography captures the subtle gestures of design - textures, light, material interactions - translating them into a visual language that both records and interprets. This process not only reveals the ingenuity of existing structures but also inspires architects to explore new techniques, forms, and solutions, creating a creative dialogue where each medium informs and elevates the other.
The photographer's approach focuses on conveying the essence of architectural projects by highlighting scale, proportion, light, materiality, and spatial relationships. Composition, perspective, and timing allow photographers to reveal both functional and poetic qualities of spaces - their atmosphere, rhythm, and interaction with surroundings. Thoughtful framing and attention to detail transform buildings from static objects into lived experiences, capturing not just appearance but emotional resonance.
Sumner's journey into architectural photography began from curiosity about spaces and the traces they hold - the subtle marks, light, and textures that reveal how people inhabit and move through them. Guided by "soft eyes," he aims to see beyond surface aesthetics, capturing architecture as both a grounding presence and a living, multisensory experience. This perspective has led him to explore buildings across Mexico, India, the United States, Sri Lanka, and the Middle East, translating their forms, atmospheres, and stories through photography, videography, and sound.
The contemporary Mexican architectural movement represents a sophisticated evolution that honors traditional wisdom while embracing innovative approaches to design and construction. Through the careful documentation of photographers like Edmund Sumner, these projects demonstrate how architecture can serve as a bridge between past and future, creating spaces that are both culturally grounded and globally relevant. This balance of humility and ambition, intimacy and universality, positions Mexican architecture as a compelling and influential force within the broader Latin American architectural landscape.
