I visited Casa Luis Barragán during my stay in Mexico City in March 2019. Since my day-to-day itinerary was not planned long in advance, I only tried to buy my ticket online a few days before my visit. To my surprise, there were no tickets available for several weeks. I therefore went to the house at the scheduled time for the visit in English. I was able to buy a last-minute ticket at the exorbitant price of 400 pesos (I didn't agree to double that amount in order to take pictures, you'll have to deal with the horrible façade of the house). I don't know if they keep some tickets to sell them the same day or if some ticket holders didn't show up.

The interior of the house is characterised by a unique use of colour and light. The walls are painted in bright colours, mainly yellow, orange and pink. Luis Barragán avoided shades of green and blue, with the exterior bringing these colours into the house through the large windows overlooking the courtyard. The use of only indirect light sources contributes to the atmosphere of the house.

However, what struck me most was the fortress-like aspect of the house and the deep uneasiness that Luis Barragán seemed to be experiencing. All the more private rooms (bedrooms, bathrooms) overlook the courtyard, while the public rooms overlook the street and the horrible concrete façade. Luis Barragán was practically paranoid about his privacy. Even his house has many peculiar details that reflect his mania and fears. For example, the mezzanine was designed in such a way that he could look into the library without being seen. In addition, the height of the half wall between the library and the living room corresponds to the height of the architect to the nearest centimetre, allowing him to move around without being seen. The metal spheres he placed at the various corners of his property allowed him to see in all directions, like mirrors.

This site is certainly the most unusual and nested site I have visited so far. Is the house unique? I think so. Did I enjoy my visit? Yes, I did, too. The guide was relevant and interesting and all the slightly freaky aspects of the house make it fascinating. Is it of outstanding universal value? I still doubt it and hesitate to give it less stars. An OUV that is largely due to the colour of the walls and the curvature of a tree seems to me to be quite tenuous. However, I am not sufficiently connoisseur to assess the influence of the Casa Luis Barragán in the world of architecture, so I could be wrong.

I visited the house during a day spent surveying the Bosque de Chapultepec and its surroundings. The house can be reached on foot by walking past Los Pinos, the former official residence of the Mexican presidents.