Monday, March 24th
List of the Day Events
-Talk by Marli de Barros, Geographer
Sao Paulo Cultural Centre
-Site seeing to S.Paulo Dowton (Catedral da Sé, Pateo do Colégio, Bovinus Churrascaria (for lunch), Vale do Anhagabau and Teatro Municipal)
-Pass by Estaçao da Luz
-Visit to Pinacoteca do Estado de S.Paulo
Presentation by Nestor, Santiago and Gilberto
-Visit to Sala de S.Paulo
-Snacks and Beverages at S.Jorge Bar
Talk by Marli de Barros, Geographer
Sao Paulo Cultural Centre
Audience: Prof. Ana Maria Tavares with her students from USP, and Prof. Antoni Muntadas with his students from MIT.
(Translated from Portuguese to English by Prof. Ana Maria Tavares and Jorge Menna Barreto.)
On this day the geographer Marli de Barros presented us with an overview of S.Paulo’s urban and geographic development. . It was key for the understanding of the city where we were standing, a mega metropolis, with 13 million inhabitants and at first glance a chaotic place. The 3 centralities, are each one a reflection of the economic, politic and social climate of the time they were developed; they are a reflection of Sao Paulos’s shifting economy. From coffee production and distribution to a service based economy, the city first centrality was located in the old city center, surrounded by the rivers Tamanduateí and Anhangabaú. This is a high geographic point that also corresponds to the official foundation of the city in 1555 by the Portuguese. This centrality was taken over in the late 50’s by the various economic investments made in the residential Av.Paulista. Barros mentioned that this shift started with the emblematic modernist construction of the Conjunto Nacional building in 1956. The accessibility and available infrastructure of Av.Paulista attracted several corporations to construct their vertical headquarters in the area substituting the early housing situation. For many decades Av. Paulista was the main business center of Latin American countries and the second centrality of the city of S.Paulo. Modern icons can be seen in this area such as the MASP – Museu de Arte Moderna Assis Chateaubriand by the Italian architect Lina Bo Bardi, among others. The present and third centrality of the city is located near one of the river Tiete shores and has as main axis the Avenida Berrini. This area is still in an aggressive process of development and change. Strong contrasts can be seen between the architecture of residential settlements such as “favelas” and middle class housing settlements, new skyscrapers, such as the recently built Twin Towers. Although physically demarked, these residential and corporative areas are at a walking distance from one and other.
Around lunch time the group of students went on a field trip to site see several places of S.Paulo’s first centrality mentioned in the lecture. The visit was conducted by Marli de Barros and Prof. Ana Maria Tavares. From CCSP we went on the subway to visit Catedral da Sé, Pateo do Colégio, Bovinus Churrascaria (for lunch), Vale do Anhagabau and Teatro Municipal.
From the Teatro Municipal the group walked to the Pinacoteca do Estado de S.Paulo through what is known as “Crackolandia.” Along the way several abandoned buildings and structures in the area where pointed out as signs of decay and poverty, and also as a sign of dismissal by the municipality. We stopped by the train station Estaçao da Luz where Barros drew attention to the British architectural style of the building.
Across the street is the Pinacoteca that has a beautiful park with sculptures, plants and trees specific/typical to the tropical environments. Several of us stopped by the gates of the museum park to buy water to a street vendor. The weather was extremely nice and warm. Ana Paula Nascimento, part of the museum educational staff, opened (on Mondays the museum is closed to the public) the Pinacoteca doors to the group and guided us trough the museum and its collection. The Pinacoteca was constructed in 1895 by the architect Ramos de Azevedo as a Liceu for learning craft and construction skills for the constructors of S.Paulo city, which last until 1921. In 1911 hosted the first Brazilian fine arts show and from then on hosts a considerable collection of Brazilian art from the XIX century, the Concretismo period and of present time. We pass by a temporary show with photo portraits taken to contemporary Brazilian artists, such as Ana Maria Tavares, Cildo Meireles, among others. The brick building has several huge windows highlighted by the renovation made in 1998 by the Brazilian architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha.
In the auditorium of the Pinacoteca the students from USP Nestor, Santiago and Gilberto made an introduction and a (silent) slide show presentation on their ongoing project about Ramos de Azevedo Monument. This collaboration investigates the commission of the monument, its construction, removal and displacement in the S.Paulo city. I understood that besides recovering the story of this particular monument, the group was questioning how selection and historicization of events influences identity and collective memory.
There was a split after this talk and a group of people visited the Sala de S.Paulo, which is walking distance from the Pinacoteca. This was a very interesting visit conducted by Rodolfo Yamamoto Neves who made an overview of the building history and construction process from 1925 to 1938. Presently besides being a train station the building hosts the S.Paulo state Symphonic Orchestra. In this tour Neves explained and showed us how the venue was adapted and adjusted to the historical building by the architect Nelson Dupré. The renovation of the interior of the building designed a very sophisticated concert hall that can host any kind of musical event from opera to a quartet concert. During the visit details such as the choice of materials, mechanics of stage and ceiling, sound barriers, sound absorbing seats, among others, where highlighted in a very engaging way. Another group decided to walk around the streets of the old center, where they bought coconut water, corn with butter and other typical things sold by street vendors in the middle of the very busy streets of the older district.
After this visit the group headed to Sao Jorge bar in the city center to have typical Brazilian snacks and beverages.
‘ Voce precisa conhecer Sao Paulo. Ela nao e bonita, e estranha’ Mario Andrade, geographer.
estaciao do Se. subway station in the old downtown. (contemporary look on the 1st centrality)
avenida Pauista. ( crowds, cars, and buildings represent the 2nd centrality)
a segregated city ( skyscrapers and new housing represent the urban sprawl of the 3rd centrality)
