Floralis Generica, Buenos Aires

Not many cities can rival Buenos Aires for public art in the streets. From huge graffiti murals to some of the most recognisable sculptures in the world, Buenos Aires really does have it all. One of the jewels in the public art crown, missed by many tourists, yet a stone’s throw from Recoleta Cemetery is the Floralis Generica.

Designed by Argentina architect Eduardo Catalano (famous for the Catalano House and the US Embassy in Buenos Aires – possibly the ugliest building in the city), the Floralis Generica was created in 2002 from polished stainless steel by aircraft manufacturer Lockheed Martin.

Catalano conceived it as a kinetic sculpture and the flower opens in the morning and closes at night when the central stamen emit an eerie blue glow. At least it’s supposed to. The mechanism has been broken for the last few months and the flower is forever open – and Lockheed Martin no longer operate in Argentina so there is apparently no way of fixing it.

The Floralis Generica can be found in Plaza de las Naciones Unidas next to the Facultad de Derecho, behind the Museo de Bellas Artes, near Recoleta Cemetery.