The Andean-Modern Hybridity of El Alto Architecture as Analyzed Through the Colors and Symbols of Its Facades

Authors

  • Abigail Roque Miranda Laboratorio de Tecnologias Sociales
  • Alex Ojeda Copa

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5195/bsj.2025.375

Keywords:

El Alto architecture, cholet, digital analysis, urban symbolism, chromatic diversity, cultural hybridity

Abstract

This study analyzes contemporary El Alto architecture through digital methods, quantitatively examining the colors and qualitatively examining the symbols present on 82 façades of buildings with El Alto architecture constructed between 2005 and 2025. Using chromatic analysis in CieLAB space and K-means clustering, a predominance of warm colors (reddish and yellow) with medium-high luminosity was identified, grouped into three main clusters. The symbolic analysis revealed that the façades incorporate iconography, distributed between modern and Andean symbols. Crucially, no statistically significant correlation was found between symbol types and color palettes, revealing an Andean-modern hybridity that operates as a “motley” process. The results demonstrate that El Alto architecture constitutes a unique way of producing urbanity that articulates diverse cultural references without predictable patterns, functioning as a mechanism of identity affirmation and particular visibility in urban space.

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Published

2025-12-11

Issue

Bolivian Studies Journal Vol. 31, 2025

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Abigail Roque Miranda, Alex Ojeda Copa

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