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| Itaú Cultural | |
|---|---|
| Name | Itaú Cultural |
| Established | 1987 |
| Location | São Paulo, Brazil |
| Type | Cultural center, museum, research institute |
| Director | (varies) |
Itaú Cultural is a Brazilian cultural institute founded in 1987 in São Paulo devoted to the promotion, preservation, and dissemination of Brazilian artistic and cultural manifestations. The institution organizes exhibitions, research projects, educational programs, and digital initiatives that connect artists, scholars, and the public across literature, music, visual arts, theater, dance, and audiovisual media. Itaú Cultural engages with national and international partners to document and circulate Brazilian cultural production and intangible heritage.
The institute was created in 1987 during the presidency of Fernando Collor de Mello as part of a broader expansion of corporate cultural sponsorship in the late 20th century alongside institutions such as Fundação Bienal de São Paulo and Museu de Arte de São Paulo. Early initiatives connected with figures like Ariano Suassuna, Jorge Amado, Clarice Lispector (posthumous programs), and curators from Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro and Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo. Throughout the 1990s Itaú Cultural collaborated with festivals such as Bienal de São Paulo, Festival de Inverno de Campos do Jordão, and venues like Teatro Municipal de São Paulo and Sala São Paulo. In the 2000s the institute expanded digital archives influenced by projects at Biblioteca Nacional (Brazil), Instituto Moreira Salles, and the Museu Nacional (Rio de Janeiro) recovery efforts after the 2018 fire. Directors and curators have engaged with scholars from Universidade de São Paulo, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, and Universidade Estadual de Campinas on ethnographic and archival research that intersected with initiatives led by Museu do Índio, Funarte, and IPHAN.
Itaú Cultural's mission foregrounds promotion of Brazilian cultural diversity by producing exhibitions, publications, festivals, and digital platforms in dialogue with institutions like Ministério da Cultura (Brazil), Secretaria de Cultura do Estado de São Paulo, Sesc, and Sescoop. Activities include curatorial programs that have featured artists linked to Tarsila do Amaral, Candido Portinari, Hélio Oiticica, Lygia Clark, Cildo Meireles, and contemporary practitioners associated with Paço das Artes, Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade de São Paulo, and Instituto Tomie Ohtake. The institute organizes performance series referencing traditions from Maracatu, Samba, Bossa Nova, and Forró alongside contemporary music projects involving musicians connected to Chico Buarque, Caetano Veloso, Elis Regina, Gilberto Gil, and Milton Nascimento. Collaborations extend internationally with partners such as the British Council, Alliance Française, Goethe-Institut, Fundación Banco Santander, and Smithsonian Institution.
Exhibitions combine material culture, audiovisual archives, and contemporary art, presenting works by painters like Anita Malfatti, Di Cavalcanti, Emiliano Di Cavalcanti, and Aldo Bonadei alongside installations by Vik Muniz and Ernesto Neto. Curated shows have examined literary figures such as Machado de Assis, Mario de Andrade, Guimarães Rosa, Carlos Drummond de Andrade, and Clarice Lispector through manuscripts, letters, and audiovisual testimonies comparable to holdings at Arquivo Nacional and Fundação Casa de Rui Barbosa. The institute's audiovisual collection documents performances by dancers and choreographers like Ismael Ivo, Mercedes Baptista, and Martha Graham in comparative programs with holdings from Teatro Oficina and Instituto Baccarelli. Traveling exhibitions have toured venues including Museu Afro Brasil, Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo, Centro Cultural Banco do Brasil, Museu da Língua Portuguesa, and international museums such as the Museum of Modern Art (New York), Centre Pompidou, and Tate Modern.
Educational programs target schools, universities, and community groups, producing curricula that reference scholars from Gilberto Freyre, Sérgio Buarque de Holanda, Roberto DaMatta, Antonio Candido, and Paulo Freire. Research initiatives collaborate with academic departments at Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo, and institutes like Centro Brasileiro de Análise e Planejamento and Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada. Programs include workshops in visual arts, creative writing, and music tied to festivals such as Festival Path and archival digitization projects akin to those at Hemeroteca Nacional Brasileira. The institute publishes catalogs and research reports partnering with publishers like Editora Abril, Companhia das Letras, and São Paulo Companhia de Dança for dissemination and curricular use.
The São Paulo headquarters occupy a rehabilitated urban building located near cultural corridors associated with Avenida Paulista, Praça da República, Museu de Arte de São Paulo, and MASP. Facilities include gallery spaces, auditoria, research rooms, and digital laboratories comparable to infrastructures at Instituto Moreira Salles and Centro Cultural São Paulo. Architectural interventions have involved conservation specialists who previously worked on projects at Solar da Marquesa de Santos and Estação da Luz. The center's public programs utilize nearby performance venues such as Teatro Sérgio Cardoso and Auditório Ibirapuera for conferences, film screenings, and concerts.
Itaú Cultural maintains partnerships with municipal and state cultural bodies including Prefeitura de São Paulo and Governo do Estado de São Paulo, as well as international cultural agencies like the UNESCO, Inter-American Development Bank, and European Union cultural programs. Awards and recognition have included collaborations on prizes and curatorial fellowships with organizations such as Prêmio Jabuti, Prêmio Shell de Teatro, Prêmio Fundação Bienal, Prêmio Mambembe, and grants from foundations like Ford Foundation and Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. The institute's networks span cultural NGOs such as Ação Educativa, Instituto Tomie Ohtake, Instituto Moreira Salles, and civic initiatives linked to Sebrae and CNI.
Category:Museums in São Paulo Category:Cultural centers in Brazil