Reused Materials Become an Architectural Language in Mexico City
During Mexico City Art Week, fifteen international architecture studios presented the exhibition Reuse: Architectures of Almost Nothing at Artspace Laguna, showcasing a series of architectural installations made from reused building materials and found objects, exploring new relationships between architecture and available resources.
The Factory as a Site for Architectural Experimentation
The exhibition took place at Laguna, a former factory transformed into an artists’ space by Productora. The choice of site aligned closely with the exhibition’s concept, as materials such as car windshields, tarps, barrels, metal structures, and even a complete automobile were repurposed into temporary architectural works that question function and form.
Reuse as a Contemporary Critical Position
According to Laguna, the exhibition brings together an international group of practices exploring adaptive reuse and low-cost construction as critical responses to excess and demolition. Curated by María Muñoz and New York–based architect and educator Edgar Rodríguez, the exhibition is grounded in Rodríguez’s essay Almost Nothing, which calls for reuse, preservation, and the redefinition of architectural value.
Design Freedom and the Reinterpretation of Elements
Rather than imposing strict constraints, the curators invited participants to design what they described as an “architectural accessory”, allowing architects full freedom to experiment with materials. As Rodríguez explained, most works involved selecting a single object from the world and re-signifying it through redeployment within an architectural context.
Reading the Exhibited Works
Most installations were displayed on the second floor of the factory, with additional works on the ground floor and rooftop. On the ground level, Sam Chermayeff Office transformed a full car into an architectural bench, while B+ created an installation of hanging fabric and stacked rocks. Elsewhere, Ex-Soup, in collaboration with Parabase, constructed a dome from Volkswagen Beetle windshields, and Equipo de 322A recontextualized simple metal framing elements into a chandelier suspended from the rafters.
Additional works included a long table by Fail made from aggregated found materials, an elevated composition of barrels and pipes by Bangkok Tokyo referencing Japanese dining traditions, a temporary shelter by TodoEverything Estudio, and miniature building models by Bessire Winter.
The Rooftop as a Visual Statement
On the rooftop, Salazarsequeromedina installed a billboard-like structure made of steel and tyres, crowned with the word REUSO, acting as a visual beacon for the exhibition. Nearby, 8000 Agency presented a series of blue installations made from debris, sharply contrasting with the red roof tiles.
A Future Perspective for Architects
The exhibition offers a tangible framework for architects to reconsider material scarcity and existing resources as design opportunities rather than limitations. It reflects a growing global shift toward structural clarity, material economy, and part-to-whole legibility, suggesting a future architectural practice rooted in reinterpretation, reuse, and transformation rather than consumption and demolition.
✦ ArchUp Editorial Insight
The exhibition Reuse: Architectures of Almost Nothing in Mexico City foregrounds adaptive, experimental architecture through the repurposing of found materials such as car windshields, barrels, fabrics, and even automobiles. Participating studios translated everyday objects into spatial and sculptural interventions, exploring material expression and flexible spatial dynamics within a lofted industrial setting. However, while the installations demonstrate striking innovation and sustainability, questions arise regarding the translation of such conceptual exercises into scalable, functional architecture—can these playful interventions inform everyday building practices or remain primarily symbolic? Regardless, the exhibition reinforces an architectural ambition that positions reuse, urban adaptability, and creative experimentation at the center of design discourse, suggesting new directions for sustainable and contextually aware urban projects.
