Culture for All

Culture has always held a crucial role in the development of the city of Curitiba. This was one of the first sectors that granted the city nationwide attention, during the 1970s, through its bold acts and undertakings that, already at that time, bestowed the mark of innovation, also in this area, upon the capital of the State of Paraná.

In 2003, Curitiba received the title "American Capital of Culture", granted by the OAS ('Organization of American States'). This was the result obtained from a transformation that had begun more than 30 years before.

This transformation began in 1971, with the inauguration of the Teatro Paiol - a deactivated warehouse formerly used for stocking army ammunition. Toquinho, Vinicius de Moraes and the Trio Mocotó inaugurated the theater with a show. Many different artists have performed in its arena, ranging from local artists of various tendencies, plays of experimental theater, to Rita Lee, when she was starting her solo career, and even debates held by the then union leader Luís Inácio Lula da Silva.

In January, 1973, the Fundação Cultural de Curitiba was officially set up, with the aim of promoting culture and of acting as a facilitating agent in the cultural production of the city.

The activities carried out by the Fundação Cultural de Curitiba are not only important in the areas of greater visibility of the city. Through its nine regional offices that act in behalf of 75 different districts in the city - as per in 2004 close to 1000 different events were organized. The public that attended these events surpassed 230,000 people, among children, adults and senior citizens.

The Fundação Cultural de Curitiba currently has a broad infrastructure, made up of a specialized staff, 150 sites for cultural events in 50 different buildings throughout the city, and diversified structures that rely on pieces of equipment that comply with all existing technical norms and standards. The priority is to decentralize culture. Thus, culture pervades all of the city's districts, through the set up of cultural centers, libraries, museums, movie theaters, theaters, exhibit rooms, and studios, all equipped to meet the needs of the artists and of the community that these cultural spaces attend.

The foundation is also responsible for the preservation, conservation and research of the cultural heritage of Curitiba. Its headquarters are located in a building registered and protected as part of the State's Historical Patrimony, the Palacete Wolf (Wolf Mansion), built in 1877, in the Largo da Ordem, in the Historic Sector of Curitiba. In the Foundation's courtyard, there is the Piá Theater (piá being a local term used to refer to youngsters). This theater was inaugurated in 1973 and is the first public space in the country for children's puppet and marionette shows.

The Historical Sector is another innovation brought by the new policies regarding culture in the city. In the 1970s, when people were still talking about preserving individual buildings, Curitiba passed a law to preserve the city's entire historical sector, an innovative policy which later was adopted throughout the entire country.

CULTURAL SPACES

The cultural spaces that Curitiba boasts are tourist attractions in themselves. The Parque das Pedreiras (Quarries Park), for example, which includes the area that was once a stone quarry and has now been named the Pedreira Paulo Leminski, as well as a theater called the Ópera de Arame (an opera house built entirely of metallic structures and glass), has already become a tourist point. The Pedreira Paulo Leminski is an open area where events can be held for large audiences, for it has a capacity of up to 30,000 people. Performers that have been on its stage include names such as the Spanish tenor José Carreras, stars from the Brazilian Popular Music movement, Paul McCartney and "monsters" of heavy rock music.

The Ópera de Arame (the metallic and glass opera house) was built in a record-breaking period of 75 days to host the First Edition of the Festival de Teatro de Curitiba (the city's theater festival), which took place in 1992. Its metallic structures, which look like wire, have become an architectural mark in the city and nationwide.

The Paulo Leminski Pedreira and the Ópera de Arame have become integrated elements in an innovative urban concept. They were ugly places, deactivated stone quarries, wounds cut into nature by man. These acts of aggression against nature were corrected and transformed into places of incomparable beauty.

The Guaíra Theater, maintained by the state government, is one of the largest theaters in all of Latin America and a point in the itinerary of many large nationwide touring plays and performances. The Oscar Niemeyer Museum - which also belongs to the state - is one of the most impressive projects created and carried out by one of Brazil´s geniuses in architecture.

In the city's historical sector, the Memorial of Curitiba is a ew and modern site, which found its inspiration in the Paraná araucaria.

The Frans Krajcberg Cultural Space lies in the Jardim Botânico (Botanical Gardens), one of the city's most famous parks. This space holds 114 large-scale sculptures and three carvings in relief made out of trunks of trees, these works in the process of being donated to the city. It is the first place in the world that was specifically designed to house the works of this Polish artist who has naturalized himself Brazilian.

The Fundação Cultural de Curitiba is the city's largest cultural agent. In 2004, a public of 1,735,564 people visited the cultural spaces that it maintains, summing up the visitors of the cultural spaces and exhibits as well as those who attended the 1240 events organized by the foundation. In the year 2004 alone, more than 1500 participants attended the regular courses offered by the foundation, which include weaving, binding and mangá (drawing classes based on Japanese characters), among others.

The Complexo Cultural Solar do Barão (a cultural complex), located in the downtown area of Curitiba, features the Museu da Fotografia (museum of photography), the Museu da Gravura (museum of engravings), the Museu do Cartaz (poster museum) and the Gibiteca (comic book library), in addition to spaces for exhibits, an auditorium and studios where courses are permanently held. The Gibiteca, inaugurated in 1982, is a pioneer in the country and it holds exhibits, contests for comic strips, cartoons and caricatures, fairs and workshops. It boasts more than 10,000 members and has a collection of 45,000 copies.

The Museu do Cartaz, inaugurated in 1981, gathers over ten thousand posters covering innumerable themes. Its collection includes works from Brazil as well as from countries such as Poland, Japan, Italy and Argentina, just to mention a few.

The Museu da Gravura, also located at the Solar do Barão, features exhibits displaying pieces of art both from its own collection as well as from invited artists. Additionally, the museum offers courses on metal etching, silkscreen, lithography and woodcut. Its private collection includes works from artists such as Paraná state born Poty Lazzarotto to Picasso and Andy Warhol.

The Centro de Criatividade de Curitiba (Curitiba's Creativity Center), located in the São Lourenço district, was built using the existing infrastructure of a former glue factory. It's made up of five different wings, measuring around 2,500 square meters. It works in fact as a true creativity lab that includes permanent handicraft, fine arts and music studios, all of them open to the public. Additionally, it features the Teatro Cleon Jacques (Cleon Jacques Theater) - an alternative space for vanguard performances - , the Biblioteca Augusto Stresser (Augusto Stresser Library) and the Casa Erbo Stenzel (Erbo Stenzel Space), which hosts a permanent display of sketches of the sculptor's works. These sculptures can be found throughout the city, adorning the city's landscape with the artist's personal style.

The MuMA - Museu Metropolitano de Arte (Metropolitan ArtMuseum), in the Portão district, displays its permanent collection, which covers both artists from the state of Paraná as well as other renowned Brazilian painters such as Pancetti, Guignard, Di Cavalcanti, Djanira, Portinari, Mário Cravo, Burle Marx and the Catalan artist, Isabel Pons. A sculpture created by Tomie Ohtake - also a renowned Brazilian fine art and sculpture artist - stands out in the Museum's inner courtyard. At the MuMa you will also findthe Teatro Antonio Carlos Kraide (theater), the Guarani small sized movie theater, a library and a chess club.

In addition to the Guarani movie theater, the Foundation runs two other movie theaters in the downtown area: the Cine Luz and the Cinemateca (for special movies), which offer a wide range of art movie programs at affordable prices. The 'Cinema a Um Real Project' ("Watch a movie for one Real") is available every Sunday, featuring movies targeted to a more popular taste and charging reasonable prices (R$ 1, around US$ 0.40) enabling citizens from low-income classes to go to the movies. Furthermore, the City runs the Cinema nos Bairros project ('A Movie Theater in Your Neighborhood'), which was designed to allow a larger portion of the population to get to know video productions. The project offers movie sessions for free and schedules weekly sessions at schools, Ruas da Cidadania (Citizenship Streets), parish halls, neighborhood associations as well as other institutions that take part in this partnership project. At these places children get a chance to see how movie projectors work and also have a better grasp of each movie, so that they become increasingly interested in the art of moviemaking. Programs also feature films made by moviemakers from the state of Paraná, thus strengthening the state's cultural output.

In the realm of music, Curitiba boasts a Conservatório de Música Popular Brasileira (Brazilian Popular Music Conservatory). The institution maintains its wind and string orchestras not to mention the Brasileirão and the Brasileirinho choirs. The City also proudly maintains the renowned Curitiba's Camerata Antiqua, which is the most important ensemble in Brazil in musica antiqua. The Fundação Cultural de Curitiba has been hosting the largest music workshop in Latin America every year since 1982. It lasts 20 days and around 2,000 students take part in its activities, while a total public of 21,000 people attend the more than 100 concerts.

Several cultural events also take place at Curitiba's parks, paying tribute to its various ethnic groups that have settled in the region since the 19th century. At the Tingüi Park you will find the Ukrainian Memorial. The architectural complex includes a portal and a replica of the old Saint Michael chapel, built at the top of the Serra do Tigre (mountain range) in the city of Mallet (state of Paraná). The chapel is adorned with a golden dome and is made of wood, in a typical Byzantine style. Visitors will always find a permanent exhibit of the famous pysanky (Ukrainian decorated Easter eggs), religious icons and embroidered items.

The Polish Immigrants Memorial, also known as Bosque do Papa (the Pope's Woods), offers an enjoyable area surrounded by trees - which makes it a perfect choice for a stroll. Visitors can get to know more about the Polish traditions kept by generations of immigrants, i.e., their art, religious beliefs and habits. Thanks to the Fundação Cultural de Curitiba - together with the local Polish community - several events take place there throughout the year. The Pope himself blessed the first replica of the traditional Polish houses that beautifully make up the Bosque do Papa when he visited the city, in 1980.

So, that's the way culture spans in Curitiba, in sites that have become part of the population's heritage. Such sites are carefully preserved not only for carrying out events there. They have in fact transformed themselves into part of the city's cultural patrimony.