Brutalism in Venezuela constitutes an architectural trend that, starting in the middle of the century, has significantly marked the avant-garde of modern architecture in the country, especially in Caracas, its capital.[1]​ According to the Dictionary of the Spanish Language (DLE), it is an artistic movement characterized by emphasizing the expressive nature of materials.[2]​.

The presence of brutalism in America was influenced by the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, who promoted the use of béton brut (exposed concrete) in the construction of the Unité d'Habitation in Marseille (France) in 1952.[3]​ In Venezuela, this trend was adopted and reinterpreted in a context of oil bonanza, which allowed important investments in infrastructure and urban modernization.

This was reflected in the construction of various institutional, educational, cultural, religious and residential projects.[4]​.

Venezuelan brutalism is inserted in the framework of modernization driven by the oil boom, a period of economic prosperity that allowed large-scale architectural projects to be financed.[5]​ During the governments of Marcos Pérez Jiménez (1952-1958) and subsequent democratic administrations, an architecture that sought to symbolize progress and modernity was promoted.[6]​ This orientation was manifested in emblematic projects such as El Helicoide, originally conceived as a shopping center with a futuristic design.[7]​ However, the economic crisis of the 1980s, known as «Black Friday "Black Friday (Venezuela)")» (1983), conditioned the suspension or modification of several of these projects.[8]​ As a consequence, some structures remained unfinished or were reassigned to other uses; For example, El Helicoide began to function as a police headquarters.[9] This economic and political context influenced both the proliferation and the subsequent abandonment of certain brutalist projects in the country.

According to the Venezuelan architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva, a cardinal figure of modernism in the nation, he reflected deeply on the use of concrete:

This vision is framed in the influence of the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, whose concept of béton brut (raw concrete) inspired a generation of Venezuelan architects. It is necessary to highlight that, between 1940 and 1980, Venezuela experienced the rise of a large cement industry, which, together with the arrival of specialized immigrants after the Second World War, allowed the massive use of reinforced concrete. The country's industrial and technical capacity to process concrete at competitive costs facilitated its massive adoption in public and private projects.[11]​.