Centro de las Artes de San Agustín (Arts Center of San Agustín)

In a small mountain town less than an hour outside Oaxaca City, a former textile factory has been remodeled into a modern center for the arts, complete with post-industrial architectural touches and a pleasing color palette.

The Fabrica de Hilados y Tejidos La Soledad (La Soledad Yarns and Fabrics Factory) was founded in 1883 in the small community of San Agustín Etla. It was abandoned less than a century after its inception.

In 2000, Juchitan-born artist Francisco Toledo spearheaded an initiative to turn the then-derelict building into an ecological arts center, which opened in 2006. Today, water features, gardens, and abandoned industrial machinery dot the complex.

The main buildings have been painted with Mexican terracotta hues. They house spaces for interpretative and visual art installations and learning. Typical Oaxacan mountain landscapes surround the center, and the terraces are great places to appreciate the views.