Pavilion commission

In May 2023, Mexicali-based architecture studios Veintedoce (Álvaro Verduzco and Beatriz Villegas) and Localista (Giancarlo Reyes) were commissioned to conceive a pavilion at El Sitio, the site of the builder’s yard of the Mexicali Experiment, to host a three-day event of conversations, film screenings, and community gatherings. Drawing on Alexander’s book A Pattern Language (1977), the architects selected seven out of the 253 patterns in the book to encourage a series of social situations and interactions: sitting, resting, watching, feeling the breeze, being amazed, sharing, listening, dancing, daydreaming, sleeping, or eating. The outdoor wooden pavilion included a long central table that was used by speakers and audience alike; a multi-scale modular forum; and a yellow awning to shelter participants from the intensity of Mexicali’s sun. The pavilion is now part of the state university’s Faculty of Design and Architecture, UABC.