Brazil’s Niteroi Contemporary Art Museum celebrates 25th anniversary (September 2)

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The spaceship is the Contemporary Art Museum (MAC) and the pilot is architect Oscar Niemeyer, responsible for the project. He leaves the ship, introduces himself and descends the monument’s long, reddish ramp.

Those who know the architect find it amusing that he agreed to play along with Belgian film director Marc-Henri Wajnberg, thereby embracing once and for all one of the comparisons made to his project. The record is eternalized in the documentary “Oscar Niemeyer, an architect committed to his century,” released in 2000.

A symbol of the city of Niterói, across bay from the state capital Rio de Janeiro, the MAC today, September 2, celebrates its 25th anniversary since its inauguration in 1996. There are many comparisons: other than a flying saucer, it is compared to a cup or even a flower. Irrespective of what it may look like, there is no doubt that the monument is among the most influential in the world.

According to José Pessoa, vice-president of the Oscar Niemeyer Foundation and professor of architecture at the Fluminense Federal University, the MAC is one of the highest quality works of Niemeyer’s last creative phase, marked by the simplification of form coupled with technological audacity. “Niemeyer sought to create buildings as if they were flying or floating. The MAC is just this. He said it was like a flower.”

Pessoa highlights some peculiarities about the museum. One of them is a certain optical illusion in the interior. Visitors have the sensation that the walls are curved, because of the building’s shape, but they are not. Also, the carpet runs up the wall somewhat, giving continuity to the floor. “It’s like playing with your eyes. The floor goes up the wall, the straight wall looks curved. There’s a special playful aspect to the museum.”

The access ramp is also a highlight of the work. Niemeyer described it as a walk through architecture. “At first glance, from the outside, it is an illogical thing. It is not a direct access ramp to the entrance. It goes around. But when you walk along the ramp, you realize that the intention was to design that ramp. It visually crosses the whole area, the whole of Guanabara Bay,” Pessoa explains.

The museum was born from an invitation made to Niemeyer in 1991 by the mayor of Niterói, Jorge Roberto Silveira. Together they defined the site for the MAC, on the shore of Guanabara Bay, at the Boa Viagem viewpoint. There, the museum could be seen, and from there one could view icons of the state landscape, such as Sugar Loaf Mountain and Corcovado, where Christ the Redeemer stands, and the Niterói waterfront.

In another documentary, “A vida é um sopro” (Life is a breath), also recorded with Niemeyer himself, the architect describes the MAC’s creation: “Incredibly, it was a simple project. The building would be here”, he says, sketching a picture, and continues, “The sea was here. It was going to advance over the water. It should be something lighter, so as not to disturb nature. So I designed the museum like this. The Sugar Loaf, all of nature, underneath the museum.”

Over its 25 years of existence, the museum has been visited by over 2.8 million people and held 186 exhibitions, with 9,000 works. Now, the work of sculptor Allegretti, chosen to mark the 25th anniversary, will join this list. It is a 4-meter-high and 7-meter-wide monument, made up of 84 cubes covered with boards recycled from the internal parts of 40,000 milk cartons, assembled in the museum’s outdoor area.

The work will remain covered until its inauguration, in an official ceremony on September 7. It will open to the public on September 8. The artist says he wanted to pay homage to Niemeyer, whom he got to know personally. “I am not going to oppose him, I will try not even to scratch his curves,” he says. The monument will highlight the figure 25, which can be seen from any angle of observation of the work.

Allegretti met Niemeyer when he worked on a commemorative book for the Superior Court of Justice. The architect accompanied him on photographic records of his monuments, always pointing out the best angle to photograph the monuments.

The artist is the creator of the ‘Movimento Círculo Único’, which proposes a contemporary and original language for the arts. Allegretti argues that Brazil should have its own form of expression, one that is not based on international trends. In his opinion, this is exactly what Niemeyer did. “He was a very brave and innovative man, he loved art,” he says.

PROGRAMMING

For the museum’s director Victor De Wolf, the 25th anniversary is a milestone in the institution’s history, a moment to revisit the past and plan the future. The celebrations will also highlight the anniversary of another monument, Christ the Redeemer, which turns 90 in 2021. “We had the idea of joining the two events: Christ the Redeemer’s 90th anniversary, which is the symbol of the city of Rio de Janeiro, with MAC’s 25th anniversary, which is the symbol of the city of Niterói. Two iconic constructions that symbolize cities.”

These events will take place throughout the month of September, both in the museum’s internal and external areas, and will also take place online, on the MAC’s social networks. “The goal is to expand the museum, which is not inside its walls, it is expanded to the cities, to the networks, to the world,” he explains.

SCHEDULE

September 8: Inauguration of the Exhibition Suite.

90|25 – “Ícones e Arquétipos”, “A materialização do invisível”, “A simbologia da paisagem” — three installations curated by Marcus de Lontra Costa.

“Transeuntis Mundi” — a project by Cândida Borges and Colombian artist and author Gabriel Mario Vélez

MAC Origins – collection of pictures from the construction of the MAC.

“Samba Exaltação” – with quotes from composers such as Caetano Veloso, Paulinho da Viola, and Nelson Sargento, addresses topics related to carnival, the pandemic, and the situation in Brazil. The exhibition will take place in person and online, signed by curator and researcher Alexandre Sá.

Commemorative Monument of the 25th anniversary of MAC Niterói, curated by Priscilla Allegretti.

September 11 and 12: performance by the Niterói City Ballet Company

September 20: “Basta Ter Princípios” – MAC Audiovisual Project, to be broadcast on the museum’s social networks.

September 23: LGBTQI+ Art and Culture Seminar