Brazil: Rio de Janeiro reopens cultural center in Figner mansion

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Serviço Social do Comércio do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (Sesc RJ) inaugurates today (28) at 5 pm the Espaço Cultural Arte Sesc, located in the Figner Manor in Flamengo, the southern part of Rio de Janeiro.

The building was acquired by the Rio de Janeiro State Trade Federation (Fecomércio RJ) in 2002 and began its artistic activities in 2003. The building was closed for seven years. After a structural renovation and restoration of the original architecture last year, the house reopens its cultural center to the public this Friday. Renovation work will continue later this year.

Built in 1912, the house is listed by the Instituto Rio Patrimônio da Humanidade (IRPH) and was once the home of Czech businessman Frederico Figner (1866-1947). Figner was the founder of Casa Edison, which sold sound and light equipment such as phonographs, gramophones, and kinetoscopes, and the founder of Odeon, Brazil’s first music recording company.

The exhibit will be open Monday through Saturday from noon to 7 pm with free admission. In addition to the shows, there will be educational activities for adults and children.

For the president of Fecomércio RJ, Antonio Florencio de Queiroz Junior, the reopening of Arte Sesc means that “the public will have access to the historical heritage of the city and that another leisure and cultural offer will be available to the people who travel daily in the region.

OPENING EXHIBITION

The inaugural exhibition of the new Arte Sesc cultural space is titled Notícias do Brasil (News from Brazil): Carybé, Cícero Dias and Glauco Rodrigues, and also features a mural about 30 meters long by Caribbean artist Miguel Afa, in which he depicts the daily education of his son by a black father.

Curated by Marcelo Campos and Pollyana Quintella, the exhibition consists of 48 engravings signed by the artists from the Sesc RJ collection that show a Brazil with a solid popular tradition, in the festivals, in the interethnic relations, in the vendors of belly shops, in the windows and balconies of colonial townhouses, according to Marcelo Campos. The exhibition is open to visitors through April 30.

Sesc RJ’s cultural manager, Cristina de Pádula, told Agência Brasil today (27) that the project “aims to open Sesc RJ’s collection, which includes some 500 works, to the public.

The works will be cataloged, cleaned, and stored in suitable spaces at the Flamengo headquarters to allow continuity of research around the collection and put together exhibitions open to the public for about three months. The idea is to gradually display the Sesc RJ collection, make it accessible and visible to the population.”

OTHER ACTIVITIES

Cristina de Pádula shared that the space will offer a varied program of theater, musical performances, storytelling, and cinema starting in March. “The idea is that this cultural center will increasingly have a wide and varied cultural program. There will also be an educational program with guided tours and school class visits in conjunction with the exhibitions.

To celebrate the opening of the space tomorrow (28) at 6 pm, Sesc will welcome Trio Julio, a choro group composed of Magno Julio (pandeiro), Maycon Julio (mandolin), and Marlon Julio (7-string guitar). He will present a repertoire of Brazilian musical classics.

The program is free, but access is subject to the presentation of the vaccination card and the venue’s limited capacity due to the new coronavirus pandemic. The regular opening hours are from 12 to 7 pm, Monday to Saturday. This Friday, Arte Sesc will exceptionally close at 9 pm. The cultural center is located at Rua Marquês de Abrantes, 99.