The Libertad Palace, Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Cultural Center (Spanish: Palacio Libertad, Centro Cultural Domingo Faustino Sarmiento) is a cultural centre located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is the largest of Latin America, and the third or fourth largest in the world.
- Venue
- Libertad Palace
- Address
- Sarmiento 151 Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
- Town
- Buenos Aires, AR
The Libertad Palace, Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Cultural Center (Spanish: Palacio Libertad, Centro Cultural Domingo Faustino Sarmiento) is a cultural centre located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is the largest of Latin America, and the third or fourth largest in the world. The building was originally opened in 1928 as the Buenos Aires Central Post Office ("Palacio de Correos"), operating until 2002. During successive years, it was refurbished and reopened in 2015 as a cultural center. It was named Centro Cultural Néstor Kirchner (CCK) for nine years, after the former president of Argentina, who had overseen its conversion. The name was politically polarizing in Argentina, with the country's presidency announcing the name would be changed in March 2024. Despite this, the name "Palacio Libertad" only applies to the building itself. As of October 10, 2024, the building was renamed "Domingo Faustino Sarmiento". The nine-floor centre has a concert hall; five other auditoriums for theater and concerts; 18 halls for poetry readings, performance art, and other events; 40 rooms of art and history galleries totaling 15,000 square meters (160,000 sq ft) on six floors; 16 rehearsal rooms; and two rooftop terraces. It is possible to reach the centre with Line B and Line E of the city's underground, at Leandro N. Alem and Correo Central respectively. The need for a new central post office in Buenos Aires was first raised in 1888 by the director of the Correo Argentino (Argentine Postal Service) at the time, Dr. Ramón J. Cárcano. Later that year a congressional bill providing for its construction was signed by President Miguel Juárez Celman. The Ministry of Public Works commissioned French architect Norbert Maillart for its design in 1889. Designating a 12,500 square meters (135,000 sq ft) city block on the corner of Leandro Alem and Corrientes Avenues for its construction, the Public Works Ministry chose the site as a means to beautify a land reclamation site where the shores of