The Panteón de la Patagonia by Domingo Pronsato: public art, historical narrative and production in the ocuppation of space (Bahía Blanca, Argentina, 1968/1970)

In this paper we intend to reconstruct the celebratory project “Panteón de la Patagonia” proposed in Bahia Blanca (Argentina) by the artist and cultural broker Domingo Pronsato (1881-1971) in the late ‘60s. Based on the analysis of his writings and the formal characteristics of the artistic proposal, we try to account for the convergence of his ideological choices, as well as the geopolitical and economic interests of the local bourgeoisie over the southern territories of the country, the militaristic and repressive climate that gave it context and the ways in which the historical narrative constituted a resource for legitimizing decisions regarding space and public sphere. We will seek, then, to problematize this aesthetic and architectural program in light of the economic, social and political variables that crossed its conception and gave it meanings that exceed the artistic dimension.