BA's urbanism between democracies and dictatorships
Overview
The 20th century was marked by political instability in Argentina and the wider region, shaped by the Cold War. The urban development of Buenos Aires reflects the shifts between democratic governments and military dictatorships. Housing, environmental and infrastructure policies have left lasting marks on the city's landscape.
On this walking tour through San Telmo and Puerto Madero, we will uncover traces of this history through archival materials and research I have conducted for various film projects. We will explore the contrasts between urban planning ambitions and the complex reality of one of the world's largest cities.
Ideal for those interested in political history, urban planning and the environment, this tour explores the Argentine labor movement, military indoctrination through education, violence against working-class communities, and the ecological legacy of the last dictatorship.
Duration: approximately 4 hours. Distance: 2.25 km (1.4 miles).
Itinerary
Modern Museum
Meeting point, buy some coffee and go to the restrooms
Cacciatore's Schools
The role of education during the military dictatorship
El Atlético ruins
The geographical distribution of concentration camps through out the city and the country.
CGT building
A brief history of the labor movement in Argentina
Urban Highways
The car-centered project for disrupting public transportation and the demolition of historical neighbourhoods.
Ecological Reserve and slum evictions
The social impact of the eviction of slums previous to the 1978 Football World Cup and the enviromental aspect of the last military dictatorship in the metropolitan area
The estimated duration depends on traffic and how busy the attractions are on the day of the tour.
Customize this tour
Want a different itinerary or pace? Let the guide know what you have in mind.
What's not included
- Tickets
- Food
- Transportation with separate driver
Your guide
Esteban
Esteban Bellotto Kuzminsky was born in Buenos Aires in 1991. He was raised on the first ring of its metropolitan orbit. Studied sociology, audiovisual arts and sound design for cinema. He has been working in different stances of the sound work of movies now he is directing his own films. He also developed a narrative job as a tour guide focusing on urbanism, architecture and arts. Since 2024 he has organized "Wetland's memories", a series of guided tours that mix the sound art, archive research and history of urban transformations regarding the tubed rivers, dried marshes and landfill coast in Buenos Aires. He works with the sound materialities of the geography trying to disarm the idea of landscape. He looks for on daily debris archeological pieces that serve to recompose our collective memory. In his movies as in his tours he focuses on the transformations of our history and amphibious identity on this shore of the continent.
Lenguages: English, Spanish
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USD $350