The Museum and The City
We invite you to take a tour of public spaces from the south to the center of Rio de Janeiro, through the interaction between the collection of the National Museum of Fine Arts and the city.
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Scattered throughout the city squares, some monuments go unnoticed in the hurried pace of urban life.
However, some works inserted in these public spaces connect us to ephemerides, important moments for the community or represent characters from history,
"Monuments are almost always the works with which political power consecrates the people and events that founded the State."
Néstor Garcia Canclini
And so, they weave ties with our identity.
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They can also spark public interest in culture, inviting them to visit other spaces such as museums, cultural centers, etc.
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In this sense, the museum and the square share the status of being spaces for meeting and interaction between people, fostering dialogue and the construction of social bonds, among other possibilities.
Therefore, we invite you to take a virtual and historical tour of a public space that begins in the south zone and continues to the center of the city of Rio de Janeiro, which, by the way, is celebrating, in 2025, 460 years since its founding.
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General Osório Square, in Ipanema
Turin studied and worked for many years in Europe, where he met Rodin, Monet, Picasso, Matisse, and Brecheret, among many other exponents of world art.
The sculptor, painter and designer spent short periods in Rio de Janeiro, where he was awarded by the Escola Nacional de Belas Arts, whose building from 1937 onwards housed the National Museum of Fine Arts.
Tigre by João TurinMuseu Nacional de Belas Artes
A lover of nature and animals, João Turin became known for his animalistic sculptures, in which he was one of the biggest names in the genre.
Showcasing strength and dignity, some of these works are found both in the collection of the National Museum of Fine Arts and in places such as...
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Praça General Osório (in Ipanema).
The work “Luar do Sertão”, originally known as “O roar do tigre”, was awarded a gold medal at the Salão Nacional de Belas Artes, in Rio de Janeiro, in 1947.
Other works by Turin are also distributed throughout the city, from the north to the south, such as the bust of Baron of Rio Branco, in Jardim do Méier; and the bust of Emílio de Menezes, in Largo do Machado.
Incidentally, it is worth remembering that João Turin's works had an exhibition exactly 10 years ago, here at the National Museum of Fine Arts. Before that, in 2014, an award-winning biography of the artist was released by the former director of the MNBA, José Roberto Teixeira Leite (from 1961 to 1964).
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2. José de Alencar Square, in the Flamengo neighborhood
Continuing from Ipanema to Flamengo, we will visit José de Alencar Square, a noisy intersection between this neighborhood and Catete. Dominating the street, the monument to José de Alencar (1829-1877) pays homage to one of the most important representatives of Romanticism.
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José de Alencar Square, in the Flamengo neighborhood
Maquete para monumento a José de Alencar by Rodolfo BernardelliMuseu Nacional de Belas Artes
The sculpture was designed based on the original “Model for a monument to José de Alencar”, cast bronze and 37 cm high.
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“Model for a monument to José de Alencar" on display at the National Museum of Fine Arts.
This is a work by Rodolfo Bernardelli (1852-1931), a very important sculptor of realistic and eclectic style, with several works in the Museum's collection...
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...whose originals were transformed into monuments that beautify public spaces and buildings in our city.
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Our Lady of Glory Square, Gloria neighborhood
Maquette for the monument to the Discovery of Brazil by Rodolfo BernardelliMuseu Nacional de Belas Artes
Highlighting yet another dialogue between collections, the study of the work, entitled “Model for the monument to the Discovery of Brazil” (1899)
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It was part of the permanent exhibition circuit at the National Museum of Fine Arts, and was signed by Rodolfo Bernardelli.
Rodolfo BernardelliMuseu Nacional de Belas Artes
In a dedication that lasted twenty-five years, Rodolfo Bernardelli directed and taught at the National School of Fine Arts, which today houses the National Museum of Fine Arts.
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From the top of the facade of the Municipal Theater, opened in 1907, the Instagrammable floats observe the hustle and bustle of Cinelândia, an area that concentrates some of the most important cultural institutions in the country.
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On the opposite sidewalk, completed in 1908 to house the National School of Fine Arts, the MNBA building houses some studies carried out by Rodolfo Bernardelli for these muses.
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All produced in bronze, the works are: “Song” (from 1907), Tragedy" (from 1905), “Poetry” (from 1905) and “Dance” (from 1907).
The two cultural institutions were founded in the wake of the city's modernization following the urban reform period led by Mayor Pereira Passos. Avenida Rio Branco was built between 1904 and 1905, when hundreds of buildings were demolished to make way for its construction, in the episode known as "Bota-Abaixo" (Demolition).
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João Caetano Theater, where you can find...
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...the sculpture “The representation of the actor João Caetano playing Oscar”, reproducing the protagonist wielding a sword and ready.
Ator João Caetano interpretando o personagem Oscar, na peça do poeta e autor dramático Antoine-Vincent Arnault (1766-1834) (1860) by Francisco Manuel Chaves PinheiroMuseu Nacional de Belas Artes
Representation of actor João Caetano playing the character "Oscar, son of Ossian", a play by poet and playwright Antoine-Vincent Arnault (1766-1834). The theme is murder committed out of jealousy, in a state of delirium.
Chaves PinheiroMuseu Nacional de Belas Artes
The work is by Chaves Pinheiro (1822-1884), a disciple of the French artist Zépherin Ferrez, who arrived with the French Artistic Mission in 1816.
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The monument, which has been damaged and restored several times, has stood for decades next to Tiradentes Square, but the representation of the original work is found in the sculpture collection of the National Museum of Fine Arts.
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Equestrian statue of Dom Pedro I
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The statue depicting the monarch Pedro I was designed by the artist João Maximiano Mafra (1823-1908) and executed by Rochet.
It is the first public monument in Brazil.
Statue of Dom Pedro I on Horseback (1857) by Louis RochetMuseu Nacional de Belas Artes
One of the greatest sculptors of his time, Rochet was a student of the renowned sculptor (and compatriot) David D’Angers.
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In parallel, housed in the National Museum of Fine Arts, the collection of foreign sculptures houses the “Study for an equestrian statue of Dom Pedro I", from 1857, in cast bronze, measuring 124 x 125 x 52 cm, which is the model of the main part of the monument in honor of the Emperor.
In this brief tour of some of Rio's public spaces, we seek to develop a dialogue between places of memory and preservation of local/national history, and at the same time revisit part of the institutional collection of the National Museum of Fine Arts.
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From this perspective, we seek to restore the ties of the city's inhabitants with some of its public spaces, strengthening bonds of belonging and identity, to perhaps renew the transmission of memory to future generations.
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It's always good to mention that visiting public squares helps us unwind, relax, and slow down, practices that help encourage a more balanced and meaningful life in the turbulent contemporary world, after all...
“changing places stimulates creativity, even when the places visited are not very different from those we are used to.”
Domenico de Masi
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Therefore, valuing nature, art, and public spaces, that is, exploring squares and gardens, stories, and memories, is a commitment to well-being.
The Museum and the City
Curatorship
Nelson Moreira Junior
Especially designed for Google Arts & Culture, 2025.
References
ABL. Brazilian Academy of Letters. Rio de Janeiro, 2025. Available at: www.academia.org.br. Accessed on: July 11, 2025.
CANCLINI, N. G. Hybrid Cultures: strategies for entering and leaving modernity. Trans. Heloisa P. Cintrão and Ana Regina Lessa. 2nd ed. São Paulo: Edusp, 1998.
DIAS, M. G. Rodolfo Bernardelli. Rio de Janeiro: [s.n.], 2008.
PHOTOGRAPHY. Directed by Lauro Escorel. 2019.
LUSTOSA, H. (Coord.). National Museum of Fine Arts Collection. São Paulo: Banco Santos Cultural Institute, 2002.
MASI, D. Creative leisure. Rio de Janeiro: Sextante. 2000.
MNBA. Donato. Rio de Janeiro: MNBA, [2025]. Database.
TIPS from the happiest countries. O Globo, Rio de Janeiro, April 1, 2025. Well-Being Column.
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