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Puerta 1808

Puerta 1808 is an outdoor carbon steel sculpture by Manuel Felguérez installed in Mexico City, Mexico. It was inaugurated on October 20, 2007 by Marcelo Ebrard at the corner of Paseo de la Reforma and Avenida Juárez in Cuauhtémoc. The sculpture stands 15 meters tall on a 2-meter pedestal. Although its name refers to the year 1808 and the events preceding Mexico’s independence, the work is abstract rather than a traditional door-shaped figure. Felguérez said it represents a symbolic gateway to the Historic Center of Mexico City and dedicated it to Francisco Primo de Verdad y Ramos. It was created for the bicentennial celebrations of Mexico’s independence.

Puerta 1808, a tall angular metallic sculpture, stands in a busy urban plaza with pedestrians, high-rise buildings, and cranes in the background.
Puerta 1808 rises in a busy plaza, framed by city buildings and construction cranes.
April 2023 © · CC BY-SA 2.0
Puerta 1808 stands beside a wide, palm-lined avenue with a domed building in the background.
Puerta 1808 beside a broad avenue, with a domed building visible in the distance.
November 2019 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Puerta 1808 sculpture in a plaza with a reflective skyscraper and a yellow sculpture nearby
Puerta 1808 stands in a public plaza along Reforma Avenue, with a mirrored tower and yellow sculpture in the background.
January 2020 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Puerta 1808 beside a street with runners passing by and a domed building in the background.
Puerta 1808 stands along the route as runners pass through the city street.
August 2008 © · CC BY 2.0
Puerta 1808 covered with graffiti, with a protest crowd gathered below in a city square.
Puerta 1808 with graffiti on its lower section as protesters gather at the base in the city square.
March 2022 © · CC BY-SA 4.0

Identification

TitlePuerta 1808
English title meaningGateway
TypeOutdoor sculpture

Historical context

Commissioned forThe 200th anniversary celebrations of Mexico's independence
DedicationFrancisco Primo de Verdad y Ramos
Dedication reasonHe was a New Spain lawyer imprisoned by Spanish authorities for his independentist advocacy and died in prison in 1808

Creator

ArtistManuel Felguérez

Discovery and provenance

Inauguration date20 October 2007
Inaugurated byMarcelo Ebrard, Head of Government

Physical characteristics

FormAbstract sculpture; not a traditional gateway-shaped figure
Pedestal height2 meters (6 ft 7 in)
Height15 meters (49 feet)

Materials

MaterialCarbon steel

Appearance

Formal descriptionA structure composed of a pair of triangles, the trunk of a cone divided vertically, a pair of cantilevered arched beams, a tubular linear beam, and a few tension rods

Iconography and meaning

Name meaningThe number 1808 refers to the year 1808, referencing events before Mexico's independence in 1810
Symbolic interpretationFelguérez said it symbolically represents a gateway and the starting point to the Historic Center of Mexico City

Location and ownership

LocationCorner of Paseo de la Reforma and Avenida Juárez, Cuauhtémoc, Mexico City, Mexico
Associated workFuente de la República, located a few meters away

History and restoration

Artist statementFelguérez described it as a living sculpture that changes appearance during each demonstration and is colored by protesters' slogans
Artist view on interventionsHe said these alterations do not bother or insult the sculpture, but give it dynamism and relevance

Significance

Artist view on relevanceHe said it will remain relevant until there is a just country in which all social demands have been satisfied, that is, never