IN STEREO

I did a study for my master’s, on the factors that affect the preservation of the heritage of Quijarro Street – which is a very nice street, but yes, it shows deterioration. In that study, I worked with five people’s life circumstances, life stories. I worked with them and gathered very interesting data. They had historical memory, and with them I was able to analyse how they perceive the patrimony: as family inheritance, Potosí heritage and World Heritage. It is different, because as a property – as cultural, architectural heritage – for them it is a social burden, it is a problem, because they think they cannot touch any part of the building.

[They think] if the roof is old, it has to stay old. They do not know that they can make interventions to improve the building. That is why it is a problem that prevents them from modernising themselves, to live better. They do not know that yes, they can do it: they can change the roof covering, they can build elevations without damaging the façade. There may be modifications, but people do not know that. Though to do a restoration of a property is more expensive than building. Many people prefer it to collapse, [so] they can have it as their land and build something new. – Jimena