Urban Design and Modern Architecture in the Sloped City: Collective Housing Complexes in Valparaíso and Viña del Mar, Chile

Abstract

The article analyzes the formal and spatial implications that topography imposed on modern urban designs in sloping cities, taking as reference the case of Valparaíso and Viña del Mar in their collective housing complexes developed between 1930 and 1980. The review of 11 case studies identifies the relationships between architecture, slope, and public space. Initially, the adaptation of row-house typologies allowed for the continuity of the urban fabric on the hillside. Later, terraced housing complexes introduced a new association between buildings and their surroundings. Finally, the verticality of towers and the networked relation with towers incorporated elevated pedestrian systems and urban platforms. The study highlights the role of elements such as retaining walls, walkways, and terraces, not only as technical solutions but also as architectural instruments of urban integration. The sloping city thus appears as a three-dimensional construction, where modern urban design is expressed through the dialogue between the autonomy of architecture and topography, shaping unique urban forms in complex geographical contexts.