#125 - Gulbenkian Series III

"A comprehensive collection of contemporary art and sculpture has also been acquired over the years, mainly Portuguese but with some works by British artists. This is housed in the José de Azeredo Perdigão Modern Art Centre.Modern Art Centre was opened in 1983 in southern part of the Gulbenkian Park. Ten years later, as a tribute to the Chairman of the Foundation's first Board, it was renamed the José de Azeredo Perdigão Modern Art Centre (CAMJAP).

The CAMJAP building consists of two separate sections: the Modern Art Museum, which comprises three interconnected galleries, and a space for cultural events, including a multi-purpose room for events and meetings. A reception hall with a cafeteria and bookshop links these premises." [*]

#124 - Gulbenkian Series II

#123 - Gulbenkian Series I

Gulbenkian's park.

"The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation is a Portuguese private institution of public utility whose statutory aims are in the fields of arts, charity, education and science. Created by a clause in Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian's will, the Foundation's statutes were approved in 1956.The head-office is located in Lisbon. The large premises, opened in 1969, comprise the head-office itself and the museum. In addition to the areas occupied by the Foundation's management and various departments, the premises include a large auditorium, a space for temporary exhibitions, a congress area with auditoriums and other rooms, as well as a large building that houses the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum and the Art Library. The entire complex is set in the Gulbenkian Park. In 1983, the Modern Art Centre, consisting of a museum and an education centre, was opened at one end of the park. The Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência is situated inside a multi-building complex in Oeiras. The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation also has a delegation in the United Kingdom (UK Branch) and a centre in Paris (the Calouste Gulbenkian Cultural Centre).

The Foundation actively pursues its statutory aims in Portugal and abroad through a wide range of direct activities and grants supporting projects and programmes.The Foundation has an orchestra and a choir that perform throughout the year within a regular season, and organises solo and collective exhibitions of work by Portuguese and foreign artists. It also organises international conferences, meetings and courses, awards subsidies and scholarships for specialist studies and doctorates in Portugal and abroad, and supports programmes and projects of a scientific, educational, artistic and social nature. Moreover, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation is actively involved in publishing, especially through its programme for university textbooks. It also fosters co-operation projects with Portuguese-speaking African countries and East Timor pursuing the Millennium goals, promotes Portuguese culture abroad, and operates a programme to preserve evidence of the Portuguese presence in the world. In addition, the Foundation supports Armenian communities worldwide." [*]

#122 - May 2008 theme day: Numbers

Robert Indiana in Lisbon: Some people like to paint trees," ... "I like to paint love. I find it more meaningful than painting trees."

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

#121 - Largo do Chiado sign

I have been posting pictures mostly of the center of the city because it is of easy access and I don't have no other chance to do more due to work and classes., however I know that you are liking it as a result of your comments. I thank all your comments and within three weeks I hope that everything goes back to normal and I can get to visit your blogs as well as comment on them because as I said once the only way to built a memory is through sharing. Kisses!

#120 - Largo do Chiado

Largo do chiado and praça luis de camões are two connected squares in the area dotted with elegant shops, cafés and “casas de fado”. From here you can enjoy a beautiful view from the intersecting street to the river tagus in the distance, nice proportions, lots of content, a space for people watching, interesting paving, and two monuments. All of these factors make largo do chiado a very good example what can be done in a big city to preserve most of a square’s traditional values.[*]

#119 - Elevador de Santa Justa

The Santa Justa Lift , also called Carmo Lift , is a lift in the city of Lisbon at Santa Justa Street. It connects downtown streets with the uphill Carmo Square.

Iy was designed by Raul Mesnier de Ponsard, and apprentice of Gustave Eiffel. Construction began in 1900 and was finished in 1902; originally powered by steam, it was converted to electrical operation in 1907.
The iron lift is 45 metres tall and is decorated in neogothic style, with a different pattern on each storey. The top storey is reached by helicoidal staircases and has a terrace that offers views of Lisbon Castle, the Rossio Square and the Baixa neighbourhood. There are two elevator booths. Each has wooden interior and accommodates 24 people.
The lift has become a tourist attraction in Lisbon as, among the urban lifts in Lisbon, Santa Justa is the only vertical one. Others, including Elevador da Glória and Elevador da Lavra, are more like funiculars that help climb the slopes of Lisbon.

From Wikipedia

#118 - A Brasileira

"A Brasileira (Portuguese for "The Brazilian Woman") is one of the oldest and most famous cafés in Lisbon. It is located 120 Rua Garrett, on the Chiado Square (Largo do Chiado), in the Chiado district, near the Baixa-Chiado metro stop.
A Brasileira was opened by Adriano Telles on 19 November 1905 as a shop selling "genuine Brazilian coffee" from Minas Gerais state. A shopper who bought a kilogram of ground coffee, for 720 reis, was entitled to a free cup of coffee. It was the first shop to sell the "bica", a small cup of strong coffee, similar to espresso. It was remodelled in 1908 and again in 1922, concentrating on selling drinks. It was decorated in Art Deco style, with a green-and-gold entrance and an interior with wooden booths, mirrored walls, brass fittings, and a long oak bar.

It was a favoured haunt of intellectuals, including Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa, and writers Aquilino Ribeiro and Alfredo Pimenta. A bronze statue of Pessoa by sculptor Lagoa Henriques was placed outside the café in 1988 (although his favoured café was Martinho da Arcada on the Praça do Comércio, which was founded in 1782). An early proprietor allowed painters to hang their works on his wall. The interior was refurbished in the 1960s, when paintings by José de Almada Negreiros and other prominent artists were moved to the Centro de Arte Moderna (now Chiado Museum).

It is a popular tourist destination, and prices are high. "
From Wikipedia

#117 - Chiado Fire

On August 25, 1988, a fire started in Carmo Street and quickly spread to Garrett Street and others, destroying a total of 18 buildings of the Chiado. Two people were killed, and 73 were injured (60 of them firemen). From 200 to 300 people lost their homes. Several of the historical shops were lost. In terms of the extent of the city affected and number of destroyed buildings, the Chiado fire is considered the worst disaster to strike the city since the 1755 Lisbon Earthquake.

A rebuilding project directed by Portuguese architect Siza Vieira has, to a great extent, returned the area to its former glory. The exterior look of the buildings were restored, while the interiors have been completely renovated.

Video

#116 - 25 Abril Freedom Day?

Today Portugal is celebrating the freedom day . However it seems that the Portuguese missed its significance and this is their attitude toward life. Nobody reacts to the fact that it is constantly threatened at work and to the injustices committed.

Disunity and fear prevails.

Rua do Carmo

#115 - Florist in Rua Garrett

"Chiado is the name of a square and its surrounding area in the city of Lisbon, in Portugal. The Chiado is located between the neighbourhoods of Bairro Alto and Baixa Pombalina.
The Chiado is a traditional shopping area that mixes old and modern commercial establishments, concentrated specially in the Carmo and Garrett Streets. Locals as well as tourists visit the Chiado to buy books, garments, pottery as well as to have a cup of coffee. The most famous café of Chiado is "A Brasileira", famous for having had poet Fernando Pessoa among its customers. The Chiado is also an important cultural area, with several museums and theatres.
Several buildings of the Chiado were destroyed in a terrible fire in 1988, an event that deeply shocked the country. Thanks to a renovation project that lasted more than 10 years, coordinated by celebrated architect Siza Vieira, the affected area is now recovered."
From Wikipedia

#114 - "Lisbon city of tolerance"

Lisboa cidade da tolerância

Click here to see more photos

Two monuments in stone, one Catholic and one Jewish, and a mural with the inscription in 34 languages, "Lisbon, a city of tolerance" was inaugurated this morning by the representatives of Catholic and Jewish faith, and municipal authorities in Largo de São Domingos.

The "monuments" were executed in marble stone, and the Judeo-shaped half an orange, is a reference to the victims of 1506, and the Catholic formed by several blocks straight with two meters high, is the inscription "we must not forget the sad fate of the Christians ".

The Massacre in Lisbon in 1506 was as it erased the collective memory, a piece of shame that is not forgotten in the books of history, fell by the wayside and only a handful of historians to refer to it. A crowd moved by religious fanaticism chased, violated, torturing and killed between two thousand to four thousand people, accused of being Jewish.

Largo de São Domingos Today

#113 - Rua do Carmo

Rua do Carmo it's a relatively small artery but of great commercial importance, due to the proximity of areas like the Rossio and Bairro Alto. There are shops of international brands and some other, traditional and very old. After the Fire do Chiado the end of the 80 the street went through a period of decline, but has revitalize itself since the reopening of the old warehouses of the Chiado, in the form of a modern commercial center, and today is a major shopping streets of Lisbon.

This is another street cut to transit. The car sales fado music.

#112 - Baixa/Chiado Metro Station

Click the photo and enjoy a trip of 45 meters profound.

This station allows access to the Baixa and the Chiado, and is one of the most crowded of the city. The architectural project was the work of architect Álvaro Siza Vieira and of plastic painter Angelo de Sousa. Due to locate the approximately 45 meters from the surface, the station Baixa/Chiado is the most profound of the entire network of Metro in Lisbon.
The signs are related to Islamic art, but retains as much as possible characteristics of simplicity and restraint of means to be used: white tiles and, in some areas of the walls and ceiling, a gilded inscriptions.