Galerías Pacífico (SPA-ENG)

Pacific Galleries

By the end of the 19th century, Buenos Aires was one of the world's major capitals, and several of Europe's largest and most prestigious department stores were building enormous, luxurious buildings to house and provide the appropriate setting for their renowned branches in the capital of Argentina, a young and thriving South American nation.

Due to the economic boom of the time, Gath & Chaves arrived to establish a business, constructing a massive building at the intersection of the commercial Florida and Cangallo streets. It began as a local company and was later acquired by English capital, which transformed it into The South American Stores (Gath and Chaves) Ltd. Later, the Harrods department store would arrive with an imposing project located at Florida and Paraguay Streets, in the northern part of downtown Buenos Aires. At that time, the wealthy classes of Argentina's thriving society were leaving their main settlements in the southern part of the federal capital to move north, following the deadly yellow fever epidemic.

In a similar vein to the previous stores, in 1888, plans began to build another important commercial building to house the Argentine branch of the well-known Paris department store Au Bon Marché. The chosen location was the intersection of Florida Street and Córdoba Avenue, and the project occupied the entire block. The colossal building was inspired by the great European galleries; in this particular case, the model to follow was the Galleria Vittoria Emanuele II in Milan.

Throughout its history, this beautiful building has housed the National Museum of Fine Arts, the National Academy of Fine Arts, and the administration office of the Buenos Aires to Pacific Railway Company, from which it most likely takes its name.

I remember visiting the building for the first time in the 1980s to purchase train tickets to travel to the tourist city of Mar del Plata. In those years, all its galleries were in an unpleasant state of disrepair and neglect. Many shops were closed, the lighting was poor, and the filth was enough to discourage anyone from entering unless specifically for the area where the train tickets were sold.

Despite the initial bad impression it gave me, a well-kept secret remained inside; it was magical, incredible, dazzling: its central dome was decorated with original paintings by prominent Spanish painters and visual artists: Juan Carlos Castagnino, Antonio Berni, Lino Spilimbergo, and Demetrio Urruchúa, as well as by the Galician painter Manuel Colmeiro Guimarás, who was exiled in Argentina at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War. The beauty of these works astonished me, even when I saw them in dim light and in a gloomy setting. I imagined, all things considered, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Today, with the entire building restored and its paintings restored, these frescoes stand out in all their splendor. They are a daily object of admiration for all those who come to shop, eat, or simply stroll and enjoy a movie or an art exhibition at the Borges Cultural Center located within the complex.

The restoration work on the Galerías Pacífico has been magnificent, and since the late 20th century, it has allowed all Buenos Aires residents and casual visitors alike to enjoy a world-class shopping center that highlights every one of its unique architectural features, built and developed in a time and with an aesthetic sense that is now largely unseen.

Its high-class, exquisitely designed stores house the leading international clothing and accessory brands; its staircases, fountains, marble floors, glass ceilings, interior galleries, and dining and entertainment venues are a true source of pride for the city and a source of admiration for the thousands of tourists who come to visit.

The good taste is evident at every turn and is recognized without hesitation by anyone who visits and tours this historic building, which is highly recommended. It was declared a national historic monument in 1989.