The Coolest Things I Saw in Rio de Janeiro

I posted a bunch of photos from my trip to Rio to my Flickr account but let me tell you about the highlight of the trip. It was a visit to this place:

This is a project called Favela Painting by Haas&Hahn. A few months ago when we first started thinking about going to Rio, Erin at Design Crisis serendipitously wrote a post about this project and I was blown away. I made up my mind then and there that I had to see this in person.

Haas&Hahn are two artists who, according to their site, “. . .  embarked on a journey to bring outrageous works of art to unexpected places, starting with painting enormous murals in the slums of Brazil together with the local youth.” They say that they want to eventually paint the entire hillside like this plaza.

It turned out that literally days before our visit, the government launched a program to bring tourism to the favelas. But the exact location of this project wasn’t on any map or website that I could find. But I was determined. I researched for hours and pieced together all the information I could find.

And in the end, it was so worth it! It combines so many issues I’m interest in: public art, architecture, urban life, community development, social tourism . . . it’s a truly remarkable project and I hope Haas&Hahn will be able to continue it.

These are just a few of the tons of photos I took. I couldn’t stop!  Check out my Flickr page for more. (The plaza where these houses are located is round and it’s actually a tight space so it was impossible to get a full shot of the whole thing.)

As we were leaving, we ran into some guides who were part of the new tourism program and they offered to show us around, including the statue and mural of Michael Jackson that had recently been installed.

These commemorate his visit here when he shot a part of the video for “They Don’t Really Care About Us.”

As we were making our way back down from the hill, we came across a samba school in session, which was very lucky because we were told it was only once a week:

That day sort of sums up my entire Rio adventure; it was full of pleasant surprises.

I want to thank everyone who sent me tips and a special thanks goes out to Lina for all of her kindness, advice and recommendations!

(Photos: From the Right Bank)

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26 comments

  1. Tonia

    So beautiful, all the colors! I'm going to have to check out your flickr. I'm going to start saving my coins for next year to take an exotic trip. Thanks for sharing such beautiful pictures.

    Reply
  5. Lina

    Hi Ally!

    It is so funny seeing the city you live and grew up in through someone's eyes!!! I feel really glad you had a good time here! And I might tell you that as a result of your advice I and my husband are planning to go to Dona Marta this saturday. Thank you!

    That little local creature you post a picture of in your flick is called: MICO! It is just a really ordinary little monkey who lives anywhere in the city, you can see them walking through the light's strings especcially when the street is plenty of trees! Lina xoxo

    Reply
  22. tiina

    wow, it looks so amazing! i'm dying to visit Americas! we just booked a trip to the USA, my first visit ever, and I'm so excited! but in two weeks we go to Milan and Lake Como, that's a perfect autumn getaway :) have a lovely weekend!
    tiina’s last post…little bit CocoMy Profile

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  23. Deborah Milne

    Ally your photos are a real thrill to see. The project is such an impressive one. It brings beauty to an otherwise bleak environment. And, it is truly beautiful now.

    I look forward to jumping over to flickr to take in more of your photography. Good for you having wine on a Saturday afternoon. We live just once!

    Cheers x
    Deborah Milne’s last post…Spot OnMy Profile

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