Museum sights in São Paulo
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A
Pinacoteca do Estado
This elegant neoclassical Pinacoteca do Estado museum houses an excellent collection of Brazilian - and especially Paulista - art from the 19th century to present, including works by big names such as Portinari and Di Cavalcanti. Extensive renovations have made it a pleasant place to while away a rainy afternoon, and there is an attractive café that spills out into the adjacent Parque da Luz.
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B
Museu da Língua Portuguesa
Half of Estação da Luz has been given over to this recently inaugurated Museu da Língua Portuguesa museum, with fascinating permanent exhibits documenting the rise of the Brazilian language as distinct from European Portuguese, as well as creative temporary installations celebrating Brazilian literature. Note, though, that all accompanying signs are in Portuguese only.
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C
Museu de Arte Sacra
The best of its kind in Brazil, the Museu de Arte Sacra includes works by renowned 18th-century sculptor Antônio Aleijadinho, along with some 2000 other ecclesiastical works from the 17th to 20th centuries. The museum is housed in the 18th-century Luz monastery, which is one of São Paulo's best-preserved buildings of the period and also a fine example of Portuguese colonial architecture.
The best of its kind in Brazil, this museum includes works by renowned 18th-century sculptor Aleijadinho along with some 2,000 other ecclesiastical works spanning the period from the 17th to 20th centuries.
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D
Museu da Imigração Japonesa
This modest but fascinating Museum of Japanese Immigration, on the 7th floor of a Liberdade office building, documents the arrival and integration of the Japanese community. Photos, period objects and a full-scale reconstruction of a typical immigrant's farm lodging tell a poignant story, from the arrival in Santos of the first 781 settlers aboard the Kasato-Maru in 1908 through to today. Signage is in Japanese and Portuguese only.
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E
Memorial do Imigrante
For a deeper understanding of the history of immigration to São Paulo, head to the Memorial do Imigrante in the eastern suburb of Moóca. Built in 1887, it was called the Hospedaria dos Imigrantes, and functioned as a holding place – not always friendly – for immigrant labor before they shipped out for their first jobs in Brazil, mostly on large plantations.
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F
Museu de Arte Contemporânea
A small branch of the University of São Paulo's Museu de Arte Contemporânea displays a rotating collection of mostly local, contemporary artists in the same Niemeyer building that houses most of the Bienal's exhibits. If the current show is not to your liking, concentrate on the building's huge spaces and Niemeyer's distinctly curving ramps.
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G
Museu da Casa Brasileira
Occupying an extravagant Palladian-style villa built by a local tycoon and his wife in the 1940s, Museu da Casa Brasileira has a hodgepodge collection of Brazilian and European furnishings from the 17th to 20th centuries. The museum's café-restaurant is its best feature, with good food and lovely outdoor seating.
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H
Museu Afro-Brasil
This remarkable museum (in a winningly open Niemeyer pavilion) sheds light on the lives of Brazil's African diaspora, from slave times through the present. Its permanent collection of some 5000 objects ranges from paintings to religious objects. If you understand Portuguese, check out their fantastic website.
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I
Solar da Marquesa
Down a narrow side street near the cathedral stands the city's last surviving 18th-century residence, Solar da Marquesa. It is a simple but delightful villa that was once home to a lover of Emperor Dom Pedro I and which now houses a modest museum devoted to the history of the city.
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J
Memorial da Liberdade
The ground floor of the Estação Júlio Prestes houses the Memorial da Liberdade, a simple but powerful exhibit occupying cells used to imprison and torture political dissidents during Brazil's military dictatorship of the 1960s and '70s.
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