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Ibirapuera Park
The Obelisk
Type	Urban park
Location	São Paulo, Brazil
Size	345 acres (140 ha) 0.6 sq mi (1.6 km2)
Opened	1954
Status	Open all year

Lake with city skyline of São Paulo.

Ibirapuera Park (Portuguese: Parque do Ibirapuera) is a major urban park in São Paulo, Brazil. It has a large area for leisure, jogging and walking, as well as a convention center. Its importance to São Paulo is comparable to that of the Central Park to New York City.

History

Inaugurated in 1954 for the 400th anniversary of the city, with buildings designed by famous architect Oscar Niemeyer and landscape by designer Roberto Burle Marx, Ibirapuera Park covers an area of almost 2 square kilometres (0.77 sq mi). It is the second biggest park in the city. Admission is free of charge.

Features

The park complex contains several buildings, most of them designed by Oscar Niemeyer. They include:

• The Grande Marquise ("The great marquee"), where the MAM - Museu de Arte Moderna ("Modern Art Museum") is located;
• The Cicillo Matarazzo Pavilion, home for the Museum of Contemporary Art, University of São Paulo, and a space for events and expos, including the São Paulo Art Biennial and the São Paulo Fashion Week;
• The Manoel da Nóbrega Pavilion, which until 1992 was the city hall;
• The Lucas Nogueira Garcez Pavilion, formerly known as "Palácio das Exposições"("Expositions Palace") and now known as the Oca ("hut", given its round shape), which harbors both the Museu da Aeronáutica ("Air Force Museum") and the Museu do Folclore ("Folklore Museum");
• The Armando de Arruda Pereira Pavilion, home for the Prodam - Companhia de Processamento de Dados do Município ("Municipal Data Processing Company");
• The Palácio da Agricultura ("Agriculture Palace"), home of Detran, municipal transit department. The building was originally intended to harbor the municipal agriculture department;
• The Planetarium and Municipal Astrophysics School. The Planetarium building which is shaped like a flying saucer. It was the first Planetarium in the Southern Hemisphere and has a dome which is 20 meters in diameter. The German projection machine shows the sky above São Paulo from dusk to dawn. During the projection a professional astronomer explains the most famous stars and constellations as well as the movements of the Earth and other planets;
• The Gymnasium;
• The Japanese Pavilion
• The Monumento às Bandeiras
• The Ibirapuera Auditorium, controversial building that was on the original Niemeyer plan, but was only built recently.
• The Obelisk of São Paulo, symbol of the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932

Panorama of the lake in Ibirapuera Park.

References

External links

• Auditório Ibirapuera
• Official site
• Museum of Contemporary Art

Coordinates: 23°35′18″S 46°39′32″W / 23.58833°S 46.65889°W / -23.58833; -46.65889

Popular visitor attractions in São Paulo São Paulo Museum of Art • São Paulo Cathedral • Edifício Itália • Paulista Avenue • Octávio Frias de Oliveira Bridge • Altino Arantes Building • Rua Oscar Freire • Praça da Sé • Downtown São Paulo • Ibirapuera Park • Ibirapuera Auditorium • Liberdade • Obelisk of São Paulo • Anhembi Convention Center • Luz Station • Martinelli Building • Edifício Copan • Museu Paulista • Museum of the Portuguese Language • Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo • Estádio do Morumbi • Estádio do Pacaembu • Brooklin • Municipal Theatre of São Paulo