Janaina Tschäpe’s third solo show at galeria Fortes Vilaça in São Paulo

Janaina Tschäpe’s third solo show just opened at Galeria Fortes Vilaça's Galpão (Warehouse). Little piece of trivia: she's the wife of celebrated artist Vik Muniz (click here to read about his show at the Masp museum).

According to the gallery, "Tschäpe is bringing to Brazil highlights from her most recent production, including paintings, watercolors, drawings, photographs from her Botanica series, and a video from her Eclipse series, all shown here for the first time.




On her huge canvas Wilt – six meters long by three meters high – and in her large watercolors, Tschäpe flirts with abstraction and landscape. The forms, full of folds and concavities, expand in organic lines, revealing a precise balance between gestuality and detail. The artist creates moist environments resembling rainy places, like “forest fog.” Using a palette of purple, green, pink and blue hues, her artwork seem to be scenes of the same place, at different phases of the day.

All the artworks in the show deal with the theme of landscape: in a more distanced way in the paintings and watercolors, and in a more intimate manner – with small “close-ups” – in the drawings and photographs. The colored-pencil drawings are made with light lines and beckon the viewer to come closer, in order to appreciate their minimal details and delicate chromatic relations.



Tschäpe points out that “in painting we have the freedom to prolong the forms to where we desire; with photography I have
tried to repeat this experience.” In the photographs of the Botanica series, the artist uses real, natural scenes to which she adds invented details: a flower inspired in real plant species, but made of colored modeling compound and plastic. With vibrant
colors, these small deceptions resemble true fruits and vegetables, but give provoke feelings of strangeness and curiosity, since
at first sight it is not obvious what is real and what is invented in the landscape.

Until 12 June, a retrospective of Tschäpe’s work – centered more on photographs and videos – can be seen at Galeria de Arte Laura Alvin in Rio de Janeiro. Still in 2009, the artist will be participating at the Triennial of the International Center of
Photography, New York, and will hold a solo show at Kasama Nichido Art Museum, in Japan. The 2008, the artist had a large solo show at IMMA – Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin."

And here's the link to Janaína's online bio.

31 May 2009 to 4 July 2009 | Galpão Fortes Vilaça | Rua James Holland 71 |
Barra Funda, São Paulo, tel. 55-11 3392-3942
Tuesday through Friday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. | Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Information: Márcia de Moraes curatorial@fortesvilaca.com.br



Current exhibition:
14 May – 20 June 2009, Robert Mapplethorpe | Galeria
Upcoming exhibitions:
18 July – 15 August 2009, José Damasceno | Galpão

More things to do and see in São Paulo:

• Private and customized tours of São Paulo
• The best of Brazilian street art on show at Choque Cultural gallery
• SP Arte, the best and most important art show in Brazil
  
• A slideshow of my favourite São Paulo images
• The Baixo Augusta district is booming with new restaurants and clubs,
  and The New York Times has it covered
• Beautiful movie theater Cine Marabá in the Centro (Old Downtown) reopens after huge restoration

Aizomê, voted top Japanese restaurant in São Paulo

One of the things that surprises first-time São Paulo visitors is that the city has some

of the best Japanese food in the world. No, really! The reason is simple: no other city outside of Japan has as many Japanese descendents. Not even New York.

So it naturally follows that Brazilians are used to eating Japanese food. There are thousands and thousands of sushi places, many of them better than most of what you find in the U.S.

And then there are the top Japanese places. Which, of course, are always up for discussion. Some claim Jun Sakamoto is the best in town, others swear that it's Kinoshita. I think that it's sort of like comparing apples and oranges. Jun does traditional sushi, and only sushi at the counter, while the hot dishes play second fiddle. He does not mess with the classic niguiri. No fusion going on here.

At Kinoshita, the opposite is true. They'll do basic sushi and sashimi but that's definitely not their strong suit and it would be a waste to order something that boring, At Kinoshita, the way to go is to order the tasting menu, which changes often, and prepare to be wowed.

But I digress.

I want to tell you about a third highly-rated Japanese restaurant, called Aizomê. The city's biggest weekly magazine (the New York Magazine of Sao Paulo), called Vejinha, elected it best Japanese in town, which raised many eyebrows. I, for one, was skeptical. The best in town, really?!

Turns out the voting rules had been twisted, and it wasn't exactly a very fair win. Won't bore you with the details. Point is, I went there to try their tasting menu and it became instantly clear to me that while it was quite good it's also a couple of notches BELOW both Jun and Kinoshita. No question.

The chef is Shinya Koike, or Shin for short. The restaurant is quite small, with an U-shaped counter, and opened in 2007. Boring, old-fashioned décor.
Strange amuse bouches left me wanting more: some sort of root with julienned carrot; green beans with miso and sesame; eggplant with miso; morsels of overcooked fish; seaweed with more of the julienned carrots.

The tasting menu started with angel-hair-like cucumber with shrimp in a martini glass. Refreshing.

Eel with foie and mushroom "risotto" (not exactly risotto). Nice sweet-savoury contrast, silky and soft texture.

Carpaccio of halibut with ponzu sauce and beet sprouts. Not original but delish.

The sashimi was over-spiced. In fact, why spice it at all? The octopus came sprinkled with what they call "7 peppers". Firey indeed! The yellowtail was seasoned with sesame oil, which was too bad because I love the taste of that fish.

Mushroom custard with truffle oil. And, next to it, duck
served atop a silky mandioquinha purée and pink peppercorns. Not sure this was meant to be eaten with chopsticks, it was very awkward. And the pepper took over the dish... Not my favourite.

Then came the sushi, also overly seasoned with pepper. Strange sequence.... The heartier, strong-flavoured duck should

have followed it. Still, the niguiri was beautiful.

Fish with aspargus and zuchini flower. Not memorable.

Surprisingly, the desserts were the highlights of the meal.

Tofu cheesecake with berry sauce:

Chocolate Soufflé (more like a molten lava cake).

Sliced fruit with ice cream.

Tofu tiramisu.

In short, Aizomê is a good bet if you've already been to Jun Sakamoto and to Kinoshita

and really want to try something new.

ps. take your own wine and pay the corkage fee, since their wine list is laughable.

Alameda Fernão Cardim, 39, Cerqueira César, tel. (11) 3251-5157

And more Japanese restaurants reviewed in this blog:

• Kinoshita, my favourite Japanese restaurant in São Paulo
• A dish-by-dish report on Kinoshita's tasting menu, with photos
  
• The best traditional (old-style) Japanese restaurants in São Paulo
• Jun Sakamoto, the Masa of Brazil

São Paulo's top 3 hotels: Fasano, Emiliano and Unique

I get this question all the time: "I'm coming to São Paulo, where should I stay?" The answer is easy, and I’ll share it here: São Paulo huge offering of hotels and flats (serviced apartments for longer stays) have three clear winners. Few will argue that the city’s best hotels are the Fasano, the Emiliano and the Unique, in that order. Here’s why:

Hotel Emiliano
The 57-room Emiliano hotel, in the Jardins, São Paulo's poshest district, is steps away from all the best shops and cafés. There’s a great restaurant and champagne bar. Rooms are done in blond woods with pullout fridges. Very nice. Rua Oscar Freire 384, tel. 55 11 3068 4399



Hotel Fasano
This is understated luxury at its best, Milanese style. The lobby is constantly abuzz with the comings and goings of well-known and well-heeled paulistas (the reception per se is hidden behind the elevators and is as discreet as can be, pictured below).

To the right of the lobby, you’ll find Fasano, the best and by far the most stunning Italian restaurant in town.
To its left, tucked away in a corner, is the ultra-cool Baretto, a hotel bar in the old style, with live music every night. Every so often, owner Rogerio Fasano invites an A-list crooner to play a show or two. Caetano Veloso, Marina, you name it – all the bigs have been here. Rooms are decorated with rugs, books and antiques hand-picked by owner Rogerio Fasano on his travels. The location in the heart of Jardins and steps away from some of the best boutiques in town doesn't hurt, either.
Rua Vittorio Fasano 88, tel. 55 11 3896 4077

Hotel Unique
The Unique lives up to its name: the iconic architecture resembles a slice of watermelon on stilts, with round windows in lieu of black seeds.

The hotel, designed by famed architect Ruy Ohtake, is equally breathtaking inside: the soaring lobby has a nook with reclaimed wood trunks for furniture, for example. The Unique is near the Ibirapuera Park, and a short cab ride from the heart of Jardins or Itaim. The all-white bedrooms are as far from cookie-cutter as it gets, with bathrooms opening into the rooms. The rooftop red-tiled pool and adjacent lounge boast incredible views.
Avenida Brigadero Luís Antônio, São Paulo, 55 11 3055 4700



Soon.... I will talk about the other great hotels of São Paulo, which are:
Tivoli Mofarrej
Renaissance
Sofitel
Grand Hyatt
Meliá Jardim Europa

More São Paulo on this blog:

Bars/Nightlife:

• Dry, São Paulo's best bar, and Pink Elephant club

Hotels:

• Ex-Sheraton Mofarrej Hotel reopens as Tivoli São Paulo Mofarrej

Sightseeing/Attractions:

• Private and customized tours of São Paulo
• The best of Brazilian street art on show at Choque Cultural gallery
• A slideshow of my favourite São Paulo images
• The Baixo Augusta district is booming with new restaurants and clubs,
  and The New York Times has it covered
  

Fashion/Shopping:

• Marc Jacobs rocks the São Paulo fashion world and opens a flagship in town
  
• São Paulo Fashion Week: what is it?
• Rua Oscar Freire, in the Jardins district, has the best shopping
• The best beachwear: Lenny, Rosa Chá, Cia. Marítima
• Is/bella, Pelu, Jo de Mer and other Baixo Jardins finds
• Beach Couture: luxe beachwear in the Jardins district
• Christian Louboutin opens store in the Shopping Iguatemi mall
• Daslu, the Barneys New York of São Paulo: high luxe
• Who is Eliana Tranchesi, the owner of Daslu
• The flagship of Rio brand Farm, in Vila Madalena: a "living" lowrise designed by hyped architecture firm Triptyque
  

Dining:

• Index of all the restaurants in Itaim, in alphabetical order
• Kinoshita, the best Japanese restaurant in São Paulo
  
• New restaurants, February 09: Dalva e Dito, Millesapori, Vito, Na Cozinha, Arturito
• A review of my first lunch at Vito, owned by chef André Mifano
  
• Maní, one of São Paulo's best restaurants
• Where to eat Brazilian food: Maní, Brasil a Gosto, Capim Santo, D.O.M., Dalva e Dito
  
• Quintal do Bráz: São Paulo's best pizza
• Dui, Bel Coelho's new restaurant, opens in May in the Jardins district
• Second outpost of P.J.Clarke's set to open in the Jardins district
• Tappo Trattoria, one of São Paulo's top Italian restaurants
• Gaston Acurio is set to open a La Mar Cevicheria in São Paulo
• Forneria San Paolo in the Daslu megastore: a disappointment
• La Casserole, classic French Bistro in the Old Downtown (Centro)
  

Alex Atala:

• Alex Atala serves Amazonian ingredients to Spanish chefs at D.O.M.
• Interview with chef Alex Atala
• Dalva e Dito, Alex Atala's new restaurants in the Jardins district
• Full report of my lunch at Dalva e Dito, with photos
  

Coffee Shops, Pastry Shops, snacks:

• Nespresso boutique, Jardins

Japanese restaurants:

• Kinoshita, my favourite Japanese restaurant in São Paulo
• A dish-by-dish report on Kinoshita's tasting menu, with photos
  
• The best traditional (old-style) Japanese restaurants in São Paulo
• Jun Sakamoto, the Masa of Brazil

Cine Marabá: one of São Paulo’s grand old movie theaters reopens after full restoration

São Paulo is a city known for turning its back on its past and ravaging most of its architectural past. The beautiful Centro – or Old Downtown – is only a shadow of what is once was, sadly, as moneyed paulistas moved out of the beautiful marble-faced buildings and settled in newer neighbourhoods like Jardins and Itaim.

The Centro was always known, among other things, for its stunningly elegant movie theatres, where once the beau monde used to go watch movies in all their finery – jacket and tie for the men, long dresses for the gals. Then it all went downhill.

Many of these theaters dispappeared, some having been transformed into “temples” of shady religious sects. Yet there is hope. Thankfully the movie distribution company Play Arte did the ballsy move of buying the legendary Cine Marabá and restoring it to its old glory. The new Cine Marabá opens to the public next Saturday, May 30. This is a great chance to get on a subway - the Marabá is a mere 300 meters from the República station - and go see a piece of São Paulo's history come back to life.

When it opened, in 1944, it was the finest movie theater in town – and soon became one of the most popular, too. In its heyday, more than 50,000 people watched movies at the Marabá each week. The grand staircase had gilded detailing and hand rails. It was the jewel in the crown of what was once called the Cinelândia: the Centro once had a whopping 30 movie theaters.

Architect Ruy Ohtake was put in charge of the new project, which split the once gargantuan main exhibition room (with 1655 seats) into five separate rooms. Eight million reais were spent on the restoration. Original parquet floors were re-installed in the lobby, where nine coats of paint were removed from the tall columns.



You can click here to watch a video of a walk-through of the Marabá with restorer Samuel Kruchin.

A second video on the same page shows images of São Paulo’s Cinelândia in its heyday. Both videos are in Portuguese.

Photo credits: Before shot, by wilnat 57; After shot by Vidas Amargas


More on São Paulo's Centro on this blog:

• The excellent bistro La Casserole, a São Paulo classic
• Teatro Municipal, Copan, galleries, etc: a customized walking tour of the Centro

Official schedule and quota for blacks: São Paulo Fashion Week 2009

Here is the lineup for this year's São Paulo Fashion Week, which will take place in June. Worthy of mention: they announced that they've introduced a quota whereby there will be a minimum number of models of black or indian descent imposed. Interesting to see how that will play out... I have highlighted the more noteworthy shows in bold.

Wednesday June 17
3 pm Osklen
5 pm Priscila Darolt
6 pm V. Rom
7pm Paola Robba
8h15pm Uma
9h30 pm Colcci

Thursday June 18
1h30pm Iodice
3h30pm Maria Bonita
4h30pm Alexandre Herchcovitch
17h30 Cori
7pm Forum Tufi Duek
8h15pm Huis Clos
9h30pm Cia. Marítima

Friday June 19
12h15 Reinaldo Lourenço
3h30 Simone Nunes
4h30 Agua de Coco
5h30 Carlota Joaquina
6h30 Fabia Bercsek
7h30 Ellus
9 Triton

Saturday June 20
12h45 Gloria Coelho
3h30 Erika Ikezili
4h30 Maria Garcia
6h30 Fause Haten
7 2nd Floor
8h15 Oestúdio
9h30 Animale

Sunday June 21
12 Cavalera
2h30 Neon
3h30 Ronaldo Fraga
5 Jefferson Kulig
6 Mario Queiroz
7h30 Lino Villaventura

Monday June 22
3 Isabela Capeto
4 Wilson Ranieri
5 Movimento
6 Alexandre Herchcovitch Men
7 Reserva
8h15 Samuel Cirnansck
9h30 André Lima

More São Paulo fashion and shopping on this blog:

• Marc Jacobs rocks the São Paulo fashion world and opens a flagship in town
• Alexandre Herchcovitch replaces Amir Slama at the helm of Rosa Chá
  
• Pollignanno al Mare opens a store in the Shopping Iguatemi
  
• São Paulo Fashion Week: what is it?
• Rua Oscar Freire, in the Jardins district, has the best shopping
• The best beachwear: Lenny, Rosa Chá, Cia. Marítima
• Is/bella, Pelu, Jo de Mer and other Baixo Jardins finds
• Beach Couture: luxe beachwear in the Jardins district
• Christian Louboutin opens store in the Shopping Iguatemi mall
• Daslu, the Barneys New York of São Paulo: high luxe
• Who is Eliana Tranchesi, the owner of Daslu
• Eliana Tranchesi's daughter and friends start the label 284
  
• The flagship of Rio brand Farm, in Vila Madalena: a "living" lowrise designed by hyped architecture firm Triptyque

Casas Brancas is the place to stay in Búzios, the beach resort town near Rio

Casas Brancas is the oldest luxury hotel in Búzios, yet looks as new as ever thanks to a recent overhaul. It has earned accolades in, among others, The New York Times and the Condé Nást Traveler and is pretty much the best place to stay in town.



The hotel is perched over Armação Bay and it is only a 5-minute stroll from the main pedestrian thoroughfare: great, since you can walk to dinner and to the myriad little shops.



Casas Brancas has 32 apartments, which either face the ocean or the gardens. The deluxe rooms
have ocean views and verandahs, as do the suites, which are the largest room category.

Locals like to stop in for massages at the spa, one of the best-equipped in town.



Casas Brancas Boutique Hotel
Alto do Humaitá, 10
Búzios, Rio state
Tel: +55 22 2623 1458
Email: info@casasbrancas.com.br


And more about Búzios: a complete listing of all the best restaurants