The undulated roof of Museu de Arte do Rio
Carioca art
The Museu de Arte do Rio (MAR) is housed in 2 contrasting buildings: a neoclassic colonial palace and a modernist former police station. Architectural firm Bernardes Jacobsen combined these 2 buildings into one complex underneath a striking undulated white roof. The museum focuses on local artwork with colourful modern pieces; the museum is a great boost for the previously unsafe port area on Guanabara Bay. Also visit the Museo de Arte Moderna do Rio (MAM), which is situated close to Santos Dumont Airport.
A palace filled with Latin-American art
It was in a neoclassic palace in Botafogo that Swiss art collector Ruth Schmidheiny found the perfect location for her prestigious private collection of 1,200 works by 117 Latin-American artists. From established artists to upcoming talent, these pieces are on display at Casa Daros. Schmidheiny financed the purchase (6.7 million euros) and a lengthy renovation (21.4 million) with her own money, and admission fees will be used to purchase new works of art. In addition to a museum store, the ground floor also features restaurant Mira!, one of Botafogo’s new culinary hotspots.
Santiago Calatrava’s museum
The future Museum of Tomorrow
Close to the MAR, in the port area which is undergoing a very comprehensive make-over, another landmark is under construction: the Museu do Amanhã is designed by Santiago Calatrava, the architect who is renowned for the design of his City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia. The Museum of Tomorrow will be dedicated to life in the near future and will be housed in an appropriately futuristic structure: an elongated curved white spaceship-like building on a pier in Guanabara Bay. Opening by 2015.