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The New Museum of Ipiranga will be delivered in September 2022 by the Federal Government

- Photo: Rogério Cassimiro - MTUR

 

Ipiranga Museum will be reopened with twice the built area and 12 exhibitions with items from the entirely restored collection. With an estimated value of R$ 211 million, in addition to the restoration of the Monument-Building, the project included the modernization and expansion of the space, which is now fully accessible; 3,500 works from the collection underwent restoration and will gain multisensory resources in the reopening exhibitions

 

With the completion of the expansion and restoration works on the Ipiranga Museum in September this year, Brazil will gain one of the most complete and modern museums in Latin America. In the last three years, the Museum has undergone a renovation that has raised the highest value ever raised among the private sector by the Federal Law of Incentive to Culture. The expectation is that, after the works, the new museum will receive between 900 thousand and 1 million visitors per year. The cost of the renovation is estimated at R$ 211 million – in addition to the incentivized resources, there are private investments without tax incentives and also public contributions.

 

The work is carried out on two major fronts: restoration of the Monument-Building and construction of an expansion building. As part of the expansion, an excavation was carried out in front of the building, in the esplanade area, which removed 35,000 cubic meters of earth, which is equivalent to the capacity of 2,000 trucks. With the new space of 6,800m², the Museum will double in size. The expansion will house the new entrance integrated to the French Garden, in addition to a ticket office, café, shop, auditorium for 200 people, spaces and rooms for educational services and a large temporary exhibition room. For the first time in the Museum's history, the institution will be able to receive collections from other institutions, including international ones, thanks to the installation of air conditioning.

 

In the restoration of the Monument-Building, repairs were carried out in all the details of the refined architecture, including the 7,600m² of the facades, which for the first time underwent cleaning, stripping, recovery of ornaments, application of mortar, treatment of cracks and, Finally, the painting. To paint, a mineral paint was used – developed especially for the Museum – which allows the exchange of humidity between the lime building and the environment. A stratigraphic study (the branch of geology that studies rock layers) and the stripping process also made it possible to recover the original color of the 19th century building. Ceilings and interior walls received similar treatment. The joinery elements, such as the 450 doors and windows, were catalogued, removed and restored in workshops at the construction site, and replaced in the same place as before, as well as the 1900m² of floor covering the floor of the building. The Franco-German hydraulic tile floors also underwent a refined restoration process. With the installation of elevators, the Monument-Building will finally be fully accessible.

 

Another essential aspect in the project of the New Museum of Ipiranga is the methods for preventing fires. The sprinkler system adopted is of the “pre-action” type with technology that anticipates false alarms, preventing accidental trips. The smoke detection system, on the other hand, uses the sprinkler technique (suction of air at fixed intervals) for constant analysis, being able to identify particles of burned residues that can foreshadow a fire. The common smoke detection systems are activated only in case of a lot of smoke, that is, after the fire has reached a certain proportion. In this way, with the sprinkler technique, the protection of the building is guaranteed through a more effective system.

 

Fire-fighting measures also include the implementation of thermal protection throughout the building structure. The electrical part was completely renovated and wrapped in a ceramic blanket, a material capable of retaining high temperatures, normally used in fire doors. The metallic structures were coated with intumescent paint, which preserves the fire resistance of the parts in case of high temperature. The roof and coverings were also restored, gaining layers of protection that ensure thermal comfort for users and the collection on the upper floors. And the hydraulic systems and river catchment were modernized, so that there is no possibility of contact with the electrical system (cause of many fires). Furthermore, in the expanded part of the Museum, low-inflammable or fire-resistant materials were chosen, such as exposed concrete and plaster.

 

Fire prevention technologies are integrated into an intelligent building management system, optimizing safety, building maintenance and co-operation processes.