House of Culture of Morelia

It is one of the oldest and most monumental monastic buildings in Morelia (former Convent of Carmen); its construction began in 1596 and continued in the 17th and 18th centuries, to which its domes correspond.

Its sanctuary preserves paintings by famous masters. With the Reformation laws the monks were exclaustrated; the secularized property passed into private hands, except for the temple, and for a time it was abandoned. In 1883 it was converted into the headquarters of the First State Cavalry Corps.

The orchard and part of the atrium were divided up and commercial buildings were added to the building. After multiple uses and subsequent deterioration, during which time it was used as a parking lot for cleaning trucks, a terminal for foreign transport and a warehouse for merchants, the state authorities rescued it to carry out its restoration, which took place between 1974 and 1980.

The works were commissioned to architect Arturo Ramírez Bernal, who sought to restore the building to its original characteristics.

In 1977, the House of Culture was inaugurated in these facilities and three years later the Michoacan Institute of Culture, now the Ministry of Culture, was created (2004).

The small cells of the friars now serve as offices; the refectory is a conference room; the dressing room is a library and the areas that were once the workers' quarters now function as exhibition or reading rooms, a theatre, classrooms, a bookstore and a cafeteria. The convent kitchen houses the Heritage Room.