Torres de Satélite

Torres de Satélite seen from the Anillo Periférico

The Torres de Satélite ("Satellite Towers") are located in Ciudad Satélite, in the northern part of Naucalpan, Mexico. One of the country's first urban sculptures of great dimensions, had its planning started in 1957 with the ideas of renowned Mexican architect Luis Barragán, painter Jesús Reyes Ferreira and sculptor Mathias Goeritz. The project was originally planned to be composed of seven towers, with the tallest one reaching a height of 200 meters (about 650 feet), but a budget reduction forced the design to be composed of only five towers, with the tallest measuring 52 meters (170 feet) and the shortest 30 meters (98 feet).

Goeritz originally wanted the towers to be painted in different shades of orange, but changed his mind later due to some pressure from constructors and investors. It was finally decided the towers would be painted in red, blue and yellow, the so-called primary subtractive colors, with the addition of white.

Thus, in the first days of March 1958, the Satélite Towers were inaugurated as the symbol of the newborn and modern Ciudad Satélite. Recently, they have been promoted by the local government to be included into the UNESCO's World Heritage Sites list, but not formally included yet.

In popular culture

The towers appear prominently in the surrealist film The Holy Mountain by Alejandro Jodorowsky. The unnamed protagonist is hoisted up the red tower, which he then enters via a circular hole in its side (painted on for the purposes of the film). Within he encounters an Alchemist, and begins a metaphysical transformation.

External links

• (Spanish)—Ayuntamiento de Naucalpan de Juárez — Official website.