A 16-Square-Meter Concrete Mantle Reclaims a Forgotten Chilean Riverbank

Sixteen square meters of cast concrete now sit on the banks of the Loncomilla River in San Javier de Loncomilla, Chile, completing Felipe Burgos Villablanca's 2022 thesis project Manto Urbano (Urban Mantle). The contemplative public furniture, developed at the School of Architecture of the Universidad de Talca, covers a riverbank the architect identified as both forgotten and overused.

What problem does the project address?

San Javier once anchored colonial maritime trade using shallow-draft vessels known as faluchos, the project description states. "As the city grew, it turned its back on the river, leading this natural environment to be forgotten." Informal gatherings filled the gap. Cyclists and pedestrians gathered on the river's rock mounds, but the improvised seating carried accident risks, balancing difficulties, and waste accumulation.

Burgos responded with a single curved slab meant to "offer a safe space for rest and meditation, allowing users to contemplate the landscape and connect with the historical memory of the riverway."

How did Enric Miralles and Anne Holtrop shape the design?

Two architects named in the project text set the formal and material logic. Burgos adopted Enric Miralles's vision of integrating the human body as a functional part of the work, drawing morphologically on Miralles's Lungomare. The result is a curved surface that accommodates the natural resting posture of the human body.

Anne Holtrop's focus on material exploration informed the second move. Burgos accepted "the folds and imperfections of the material as the project's definitive aesthetic stamp," allowing the construction process to leave a visible imprint on the finished concrete.

Why concrete, and how was it built?

Concrete was chosen because its sediments, the project text states, "engage in a dialogue with the local rocks." The build used a mixed formwork system:

• Wood slats and boards formed the perimeter
• Damp clayey soil covered with black polyethylene shaped the curved slab's interior
• Ribbed steel mesh and PVC spacers reinforced the structure

The site dictated the construction sequence. The riverbank was accessible only on foot, forcing the architect and crew to transport every load of material, tool, and supply manually. Burgos stayed on site continuously and improvised unconventional techniques to shape and finish the concrete directly on the bank, according to the project description.

Photography by Alexis Álvarez and Felipe Burgos documents the resulting 27-image gallery of the 16 m² installation, completed in 2022 and now published on ArchDaily on October 7, 2026.

What does the project suggest for small-scale reclamation work?

Manto Urbano points to a method smaller than master planning: a single 16 m² cast object, sited where a community already congregates, can reattach a town to a derelict waterfront. Burgos's reliance on foot-access-only logistics and improvised formwork offers a replicable template for student and community-led work in river corridors without road infrastructure, where conventional construction equipment cannot reach.