People of San Miguel: Federico Vidargas, A Living Representation Of Biculturalism

By Natalie Taylor

San Miguel de Allende has always been a place of convergence. Even before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadores, various indigenous people came here to trade, exchange ideas, and intermarry. In the 1950s, with the arrival of US Veterans under the GI Bill, it became a cultural crossroads once again. Federico Vidargas is a product of this phenomenon.

His mother, Dottie Birk, came from Chicago, where Stirling Dickinson was a neighbor. Through him, she learned about the school at Instituto Allende and decided to come here to study. She met José Vidargas, a native of San Miguel, and they married in 1948, becoming one of the first bicultural families in town.

Federico grew up in two parallel worlds—his Mexican grandparents and extended family as a young boy in San Miguel, and later taking frequent visits to his other family in Chicago.

He remembers fondly growing up in a very different San Miguel; a small town where you ran free in the fields with other boys, watched over by the entire community. If you misbehaved, an adult neighbor would admonish you, because everyone knew each other. But the children had pretty much free rein, and one of his fondest memories was when he and his companions would play the game: “vámonos de mosca.” It consisted of running after a moving truck and attempting to get on it. It is a wonder that they all survived!

He was fully integrated in the community, including joining the religious processions in town and sometimes being part of the entourage carrying a religious figure. Federico chose architecture as his profession, starting at UNAM in México City, and then completing his studies at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. After college, he spent time in Paris and then joined a kibbutz in Israel for about six months, which offered an opportunity to reach back to his Jewish roots on his mother’s side. He developed a taste for travel and visited other countries as well. His experiences growing up in a bicultural environment in San Miguel, and his later travels in various countries opened his mind to other world views and cultures. Federico believes that this global approach helps him to understand clients who come with different expectations and attitudes, and makes him a better architect.

In 1977, he met his future wife, Barbara Larsen, in Chicago. They wanted to marry two years later in San Miguel, outdoors, but none of the priests would agree; wedding ceremonies had to be inside a church. So Federico and Barbara chose to have the ceremony at Villa Santa Monica, as lovely a place as one could find.

Federico saw his family’s involvement in the community with his maternal grandmother founding the Audubon Society in México and his mother joining Helen Wale in the 1950s to create the Biblioteca Pública. Dottie Vidargas became fully committed to and involved with local lives. In the 90s, he became part of the building committee of the Biblioteca when they made additions and renovations. Part of this was drawing a masterplan which included the current Sala Quetzal, opening the Santa Ana Café and the theater.

Federico and Barbara lived in México City for a few years, but in 2020, they returned to San Miguel and have lived here ever since. He became involved with the Biblioteca once again as a board member. The renovation and improvement projects continue and will always go on as part of making this a better space. It is a challenge because the building is ancient—the main structure was built in the 1700s—and an asset because of its uniqueness and colonial beauty, but sometimes difficult to work with when you are moving toward modernization. The hope for the future is to have a specific section dedicated to San Miguel culture and history. This means acquiring and storing old books, manuscripts, documents, and photographs, both in physical form and digitally. It is a long-term project, but Federico is hopeful because he says, “We are successful today because of the quality staff.”

Part of the transformation of the Biblioteca over the past few years has been a greater involvement with the community. This means bilingual classes and workshops for the local children and adults, with an open and inviting attitude to make it a place where locals feel at home and find enough activities of interest.  Just like the physical improvement of the building, it is an ongoing project, with the goal always a step ahead.

Teatro Santa Ana, an important part of the Biblioteca for many years, has also experienced a metamorphosis. It used to rely more on programming brought from outside, while now a lot of it is internal, with the staff more involved in developing interesting programs for the public—concerts, lectures, film, plays.

Federico Vidargas is currently the Vice President of the Biblioteca and feels a strong commitment to the organization. He expects to continue participating actively in the future, either with his architectural expertise or raising funds and seeking grants for the Biblioteca’s ongoing projects.