Pinacoteca do Estado (State Art Gallery) is one of the first museums of São Paulo, founded in the very beginning of the 20th century. It went through a renovation in the 90s, which was conducted by architect Paulo Mendes da Rocha and today, in my opinion, it is one of the most beautiful places in São Paulo. Gorgeous and a mandatory visit!
Lots of cool stuff go around inside that place, mainly exhibitions of photography, sculpture and visual arts in general.
There’s a hall in the second floor dedicated to neo-concretism – it’s the most amazing room of Pinacoteca and few people know it. You go up a floor, cross the corridor and, in the corner, you’ll find the neo-concretists: works of Willys de Castro, Amilcar de Castro... lots of nice artworks. By far it is my favorite art room in S.P.
I go there since I was very little. Depending on the exhibitions going on, the audience varies. If it is something too hermetic, there’s more “intellectuals”. But the Ron Mueck exhibition, for example, attracted all kinds of people from all social levels – it made the space more democratic.
Coffee shop there is also very pleasant, it never lets me down!
