Participants will visit the ancient Mayan cultures of the Yucatan Peninsula to vibrant, cosmopolitan Mexico City, the country’s capital, and its richly cultural surroundings to the traditionally preserved colonial cities of Puebla and Oaxaca.

The purpose of this program is to experience the transformation Mexico has undergone for more than two millennia as an outcome of the transition between three major historical periods: the Ancient, the Colonial and the Contemporary. These time frames represent cultural layers superimposed over time that comprise what is today’s Mexican culture. The program is guided by KU Architecture Professor Alejandro Aptilon, a native of Mexico himself who has practiced, taught, and researched Mexican architecture extensively. Participants will visit the ancient Mayan cultures of the Yucatan Peninsula to vibrant, cosmopolitan Mexico City, the country’s capital, and its richly cultural surroundings to the traditionally preserved colonial cities of Puebla and Southwest Oaxaca. We will analyze the impact of the intense Mexican natural light and the use of local materials in architecture. In parallel, we will explore the local culture deeply rooted in ancient tradition and its progressive evolution from its sophisticated cuisine to local craftsmanship, the natural surroundings, and its resources. 

2025 Dates:
Depart U.S. and arrive in Merida: May 19, 2025
Depart Mexico City for U.S.: June 8, 2025

Yucatán (7 days) We start the program in Yucatan Peninsula and will stay in the city of Mérida and explore the contrasting architectures, including visits to the colonial Cathedral, and the recently built Palace of the Music (Alejandro Medina Arquitectura, Reyes Rios Larrain Arquitectos, Muñoz Arquitectos and Quesnel). We will also visit the Mayan majestic sites of Chichen Itza (Castle and Observatory), Uxmal and Kabah as well as a neighboring old Hacienda preserved as it operated over two hundred years ago.

Oaxaca & Puebla (6 days) The program will visit the dynamic city of Oaxaca de Juarez in southern Mexico. In Oaxaca will visit the Mercado, Cathedral, and a day trip to the Zapotec/ Mixtec archaeological sites and Árbol del Tule along with renowned renovated and contemporary buildings. The group will also visit the UNESCO Heritage city of Puebla. Puebla is one of the best-preserved colonial cites in Mexico and while there the program will visit to the Ex Convento de Santa Rosa, Biblioteca Palafoxiana; Museo Amparo (Enrique Norten); Downtown and the Cathedral.

Mexico City (7 days) While in Mexico City we will study ancient, colonial and contemporary buildings. We will visit Teotihuacan, the largest city of pre-Aztec central Mexico and the great frescoes at the 16th Century Convent of San Agustin Acolman.

Downtown Mexico City: We will visit the following places: Chapultepec Park and Reforma Avenue; Highrise buildings (Richard Rogers, Teodoro González de León); 19th century Castle of Chapultepec; Tamayo Museum (Zabludovsky and González de León), National Auditorium performance hall (Zabludovsky and González de León), Restaurant del Lago (Félix Candela), Anthropology Museum (Pedro Ramírez Vázquez).

Polanco neighborhood: We will study the1940’s California Baroque style houses.

Condesa and Roma neighborhoods: We will study the functionalist architecture and early 20th century art deco buildings and early buildings by Barragán. Contemporary housing by Javier Sánchez, Isaac Broid, Enrique Norten and Alejandro Aptilon among others.

Historical Center: Visit buildings in Centro Histórico downtown historic district such as the grand Cathedral which was built upon the Aztec temples and is facing the second largest square in the World.

South area and San Ángel neighborhood: Visit to 1950’s UNAM campus and early 20th century functionalist architecture of Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo houses and visit the contemporary collection of buildings at the Centro Nacional de las Artes in Tlalpan.

We will also visit architecture schools and an architectural firm in Mexico City. The two architecture schools in Mexico City include the UNAM, the first university in the Americas, founded in 1553, and its 1950’s campus inspired by Le Corbusier urban proposals. The UNAM campus has exemplary buildings of the “Integración Plástica” tendency by Félix Candela, Juan O’Gorman, and murals by Siqueiros and other exponents of Muralist art in Mexico and visit the Centro de Diseño, Cine y Televisión in its new campus designed by Enrique Norten.

Program Courses:

5 Year Master of Architecture Students who entered KU before AY 2022-2023 will enroll in:

• ARCH 590 Study Abroad (6 Credits)
• ARCH 699  Documentation (2 Credits) 

5 Year Master of Architecture Students who entered KU in or after AY 2022-2023 will enroll in:

• ARCH 590 Study Abroad (6 Credits)

2 or 3 Year Master of Architecture Students will enroll in:

• ARCH 790 Study Abroad (6 Credits)

Interior Architecture Students will enroll in:

• IA 690 Study Abroad for Interior Architecture (5 credits)

Architectural Engineering Students will enroll in:

• ARCH 590 Study Abroad (5 Credits)

Students will stay in hotels or hostels. 

The program is open to all KU and Non-KU Architecture, Interior Architecture and Design Students. Prior to the study abroad program, the KU Masters of Architecture Students (3 year or 5 year program) should have completed ARCH 208 or ARCH 502 and Interior Architecture Students should have completed Arch 109.  
The following additional academic majors are welcome to apply:

• KU Urban Planning Students 
• KU Architectural Engineering students who are in their second year or above 
• KU Design students in their second year or above
• All Majors-Contact Renee Frias at rfrias@ku.edu for requirements.

Program Cost for Architecture in Mexico Winter Break

Alejandro Aptilon is an Assistant Teaching Professor at the KU School of Architecture and Design.
His award-winning architectural firm has been commissioned to design projects in Mexico, Israel,
and the United States and was selected by the AIA Gallery in New York as a representative of
emerging trends in Mexican architecture. Aptilon has taught in both the undergraduate and graduate art and architecture programs at various academic institutions in Mexico and the U.S. He has written extensively about Mexican architecture and produced a documentary series on Mexico City architecture for Mexico’s public television network. His work has been widely exhibited and published internationally in numerous periodicals and books, including Global Architecture and compendia such as 1000X Architecture of the Americas (Braun, 2008), and he is co-author with Alfonso Pérez-Méndez of the book Las Casas del Pedregal 1947-1968 (Gustavo Gili, 2007).

For more information contact:
Alejandro Aptilon
Assistant Teaching Professor                                                                    
University of Kansas
Architecture Department
aaptilon@ku.edu