Dieste, González Zuleta and Sánchez del Río: three approaches to reinforced-brick shell structures

Abstract

Reinforced-brick shell structures are mainly known through the extraordinary work of the Uruguayan engineer Eladio Dieste. However, other remarkable examples of shells in reinforced masonry were being built during Dieste’s development of the technique or even before. The works by Guillermo González Zuleta in Colombia and Ildefonso Sánchez del Río in Spain deserve a closer look. Analysis of the three engineers’ backgrounds, writings and work reveals different original conceptions of the technique. The conceptual approach to the reinforced brick material and theway they approached challenges and obstacles are very different in the three cases, yet they finally achieved similar structural solutions. This document presents a review of historical reinforced masonry architectural examples by these three master builders. The paper analyses their roles in the development of this technique and presents some of their most influential or striking architectural pieces.