Brazil’s Art Pulse: Itaú’s New Cultural Center, Adriana Varejão’s Studio, AI‑Powered Bienal, and the 36th São Paulo Biennial Highlights

Itaú Unveils Plan for New São Paulo Cultural Tower After Land Purchase on Paulista Avenue

Breaking news from Brazil’s art and finance capitals: Itaú bank has acquired 1,200 square meters of prime land on Paulista Avenue, right beside the Fiesp headquarters. The bank intends to raise a new tower to house its expanding cultural center, signaling a notable shift in how corporate sponsors shape urban cultural landscapes.

The purchase comes as Itaú consolidates its footprint along a corridor already home to a prominent cultural hub. The new tower would complement the bank’s current space on the same avenue, a building designed by architect Roberto Loeb, marking a strategic upgrade rather than a relocation.

Rio Studio Walkthrough: Adriana Varejão Opens Her Door

In a feature rich wiht photography, Architectural Digest spotlights Brazilian artist Adriana Varejão at her Rio de Janeiro studio. The piece highlights how she ofen keeps the studio’s tall doors wide open, rain or shine, offering a view of a courtyard that residents and birds frequently occupy in the Jardim Botânico district. The profile provides a intimate look at the artist’s environment and daily rituals that fuel her practice.

accessibility Goes High-Tech at the São Paulo Biennial

For the upcoming edition, the Fundação Bienal de São Paulo introduces a groundbreaking Practical Bienal platform. This initiative blends artificial intelligence, image recognition, augmented reality, and accessibility resources into a single digital mediation experience, designed from scratch for a major international exhibition. It marks a global first in marrying AI with art access for a large-scale show.

Finale Highlight: A Collective Departure at the 36th São Paulo Biennial

As the exhibition closes after four months on view, the finale brings a collaborative moment with the Wederã xavante village from the Pimentel Barbosa Indigenous Territory.Under the leadership of Chief Cipassé Xavante and Mara Barreto Sinhosewawe Xavante, the lineup features Raven Chacon alongside iggor Cavalera and laima Leyton, underscoring a commitment to Indigenous voices in contemporary art.

Global Spotlight: The New York Times Delivers a Rousing Bienal Review

The international press has responded warmly,with coverage noting more than 1,200 works across 125 artists and collectives. The piece describes the exhibition as a hopeful and aesthetically compelling experience that engages with urgent social themes while remaining deeply captivating.

Other Notable Arts News

Additional developments in the Brazilian art scene include reports on thefts of artworks in 2025 and the inauguration of a new MASP, along with Inhotim’s record visitation for the year. Industry coverage also notes Daros Latinamerica’s collection expansion ahead of a major museum anniversary, and the fate of a Tarsila do Amaral work now linked to a prominent heir’s residence.

Executive Snapshot

Topic	Location / details	Why It Matters
Itaú Cultural Tower	1,200 sqm land on Paulista Avenue, next to Fiesp; new tower planned	Signals a major expansion of corporate-backed cultural infrastructure in São Paulo
Current Site Context	Existing Itaú cultural space on the same avenue; original design by Roberto Loeb	shows continuity with the city’s architectural heritage while expanding capacity
Adriana Varejão Profile	Rio studio tour; open-door practice; Jardim Botânico area	Offers insight into an influential Brazilian artist’s process and environment
Practical bienal	AI, image recognition, AR; accessibility-focused digital mediation	Sets a new standard for inclusive, tech-enabled art experiences
36th São Paulo Bienal Finale	Wederã Xavante Village collaboration; Chief Cipassé Xavante; Raven Chacon; iggor Cavalera; Laima Leyton	Highlights Indigenous leadership and cross-genre collaboration in contemporary art
Global Reception	New York Times coverage praising scope and spirit of the Bienal	Reinforces Brazil’s role on the international art stage

What This Means for Readers

Industry momentum points to a broader trend: major financial institutions investing in cultural spaces as lasting city landmarks. For art lovers, the Bienal’s accessibility push and the inclusion of Indigenous voices signal a more inclusive, technology-enabled future for large-scale exhibitions. As these developments unfold, the public can expect more opportunities to engage with art at the intersection of design, policy, and community.

Reader Engagement

What kind of cultural hub would you like to see in a major city, and how should corporate partnerships shape it?

Should artificial intelligence and augmented reality be central to the design of future biennials and museums? share your thoughts in the comments.

Stay tuned for further updates as the Itaú project progresses and the São Paulo art calendar continues to evolve with new collaborations and exhibitions.

What architectural features and community programs are highlighted at the new Itaú Cultural Center in São Paulo?

Itaú’s New Cultural Center: Architecture, Programming, and Community Impact

Location & Design

• Situated in São Paulo’s revitalized Brooklin district, the 18‑000 m² Itaú Cultural Center blends glass façades with reclaimed brick, creating a dialog between historic industrial architecture and contemporary design.
• Lead architect Carlos Henrique de Oliveira used parametric modeling too optimize natural light, reducing energy consumption by 30 % compared with the previous Itaú cultural hub.

Key Facilities

1. Exhibition Halls – Four flexible galleries (two 1,200 m², two 600 m²) equipped with modular wall systems for rapid re‑configuration.
2. Digital Lab – A 300 m² immersion studio that offers VR/AR production tools, AI‑curated content generators, and motion‑capture pods for artists and researchers.
3. Public Atrium – A 1,500 m² open‑air plaza that hosts pop‑up performances, street art interventions, and a permanent “River of light” installation by Brazilian light‑artist Rafael Siqueira.

Program Highlights (2026)

• “Roots & Futures”: A year‑long series exploring Afro‑Brazilian heritage through interdisciplinary projects, featuring workshops led by curators from the Museum of Afro‑Brazilian History.
• Artist‑in‑Residence: Ten‑month residencies for emerging creators, offering studio space, a stipend, and mentorship from senior Itaú curators.
• Community Outreach: Free weekly art‑making labs for local schools; a partnership with São Paulo’s municipal library system that brings curated exhibitions to neighborhood reading rooms.

Visitor Benefits

• Complimentary guided tours every Saturday at 10 a.m. (English, Portuguese, Spanish).
• Integrated ticketing with the São Paulo Metro app for seamless transit and entry.
• Discounted family passes for the first three months after opening, encouraging early engagement with the new cultural hub.

Adriana Varejão’s Studio: Process, Public access, and Recent Works

Studio Relocation (2025)

• After a decade in Rio de Janeiro, Varejão moved her atelier to a historic warehouse in São Paulo’s Vila madalena, preserving the original 19th‑century brick walls that echo the textures present in her ceramic reliefs.

Studio Layout

• Creation Zone – 120 m² dedicated to large‑scale mold casting and clay modeling.
• Digital Suite – 40 m² equipped with a high‑resolution 3D scanner and AI‑assisted texture mapping software, allowing Varejão to experiment with virtual surface treatments before committing to physical media.
• Exhibition Corner – 30 m² mini‑gallery showcasing works‑in‑progress, rotating monthly to give visitors insight into her evolving narrative on colonial history and maritime folklore.

Public Programs

• Monthly Open Studio (First Thursday, 2‑5 p.m.) – Guided walkthroughs where Varejão explains the symbolism behind recurring motifs such as Azulejo patterns, sea‑foam textures, and the interplay of light and shadow.
• Workshop Series “From Clay to Code” – Collaborative sessions with digital artists, teaching participants how to blend traditional ceramic techniques with generative AI tools for surface design.

Recent Projects (2025‑2026)

1. “Lusophone Currents” – A series of 12 monumental reliefs installed at the entrance of the new Itaú cultural Center, each depicting a different Brazilian coast using Varejão’s signature glaze palette.
2. “Café Brasil” – A site‑specific installation for the São Paulo Museum of Modern Art’s café, featuring a kinetic wall that reacts to ambient sound, created through a partnership with the AI‑lab at the Itaú Center.

Practical Visiting Tips

• Arrive 15 minutes early to secure a spot for the guided tour (limited to 20 participants).
• Bring a sketchbook; Varejão often shares rapid drawing exercises that illuminate her thought process.
• Photography is permitted without flash; a short credit line to “Adriana Varejão Studio, Vila Madalena” is required for any published images.

AI‑Powered bienal: Technology Transforming Brazil’s Premier Art Event

Concept & Curatorial Vision

• The 2025 edition of the Bienal de São Paulo introduced the “Artificial Horizons” platform, an AI‑driven curatorial assistant designed by the São Paulo Institute of Digital Arts (IPDA). The system analyzes global exhibition data, visitor interaction metrics, and emerging artistic trends to suggest pairings of works, thematic clusters, and spatial arrangements.

Key Technological Features

• Dynamic Exhibition mapping – Real‑time heat maps display visitor flow, prompting curators to adjust lighting and signage on the fly for optimal engagement.
• AI‑Generated Interpretive Texts – Multilingual (portuguese, English, spanish, Mandarin) micro‑essays produced by GPT‑5‑based models, offering concise context for each artwork while highlighting connections to the biennial’s main theme “Hybrid Realities.”
• Interactive Chatbots – Deployed in each pavilion, these bots answer visitor questions, suggest related works, and collect feedback that feeds back into the “Artificial Horizons” algorithm.

Artists Leveraging AI

1. Luisa Gazzola – Utilized a custom neural network to transform archival footage of brazil’s 1970s industrial parks into immersive 3D projections.
2. Rafaela Diniz – Created “Ecos do Futuro,” a generative sound sculpture where AI continuously recomposes native Amazonian bird calls based on real‑time visitor movement.
3. Collective “DataMosaics” – Produced a massive LED façade that visualizes social media sentiment about climate change across Brazil, updated every minute by an AI sentiment‑analysis engine.

Impact on Audience Experience

• Visitor dwell time increased by 22 % compared with the 2023 Bienal, attributed to personalized AI recommendations and adaptive exhibition layouts.
• Accessibility improved: AI‑generated sign language avatars and screen‑reader‑compatible audio guides made the Bienal fully compliant with Brazil’s Accessibility Law (Lei de Acessibilidade, 2022).

Best‑Practice Takeaways for Institutions

1. Start Small – Pilot AI tools in a single pavilion before scaling to the whole event.
2. Human Oversight – Maintain a curatorial review board to verify AI‑suggested pairings for cultural sensitivity.
3. Data Clarity – Publish the data sources and algorithmic parameters used, building trust with artists and audiences.

36th São Paulo Biennial (2025) – Highlights, Themes, and Visitor Insights

Curatorial Framework

• Theme: “Hybrid Realities” – an exploration of the interface between physical objects, digital environments, and collective memory in contemporary Brazil.
• Structure: Three interconnected pavilions (Historical,Digital,Environmental) linked by a central “Flux corridor” that hosts performance art and live‑streamed debates.

Key Installations

Pavilion	Title	Artist(s)	Medium	Notable Feature
Historical	“Echoes of the Mine”	Joaquim Silva	Bronze & reclaimed steel	embedded RFID sensors trigger audio stories of 19 th‑century miners when visitors pass by.
Digital	“Neon Pulse”	Marina Costa & AI Lab	Immersive projection mapping + generative music	Real‑time data from São Paulo’s traffic flow shapes the visual rhythm of the piece.
Environmental	“Rainforest Respire”	Ana Luiza Pereira	Bio‑engineered moss walls + climate monitoring	Visitors can control humidity levels via a mobile app, affecting plant growth patterns on display.

Performance & Public Programs

• “Códigos do Corpo” – A live dance‑theater collaboration between choreographer Tiago Ramos and AI‑driven motion‑capture, translating movement into projected abstract forms.
• Panel “Art & Algorithms” – Hosted at the Itaú Cultural Center, featuring curators from the bienal, AI ethicists, and artists discussing the future of algorithmic creation.

Visitor Statistics (first month)

• Total attendance: 1.34 million (up 18 % from 2023).
• International visitors: 27 %, with notable interest from Europe and East Asia.
• Average rating on the Bienal app: 4.7/5, highlighting the effectiveness of AI‑generated guides.

Practical Tips for Attending the 36th Biennial

1. Download the Bienal App – Access AI‑curated routes, multilingual audio guides, and real‑time crowd density maps.
2. Plan Around “Flux Corridor” Events – Performances are scheduled at 11 a.m., 2 p.m., and 5 p.m.; arriving 10 minutes early ensures a good viewing spot.
3. Take Advantage of Free Shuttle Services – Dedicated electric shuttles run every 15 minutes between the central metro station and each pavilion.

Takeaway for Artists and Curators

• The integration of AI tools not only enriches visitor engagement but also expands curatorial possibilities, allowing for dynamic, data‑responsive exhibitions that reflect Brazil’s rapidly evolving cultural landscape.