The Oscar Niemeyer Museum, which also known as Museu do Olho or Museum of the Eye for its new addition, is located in the city of Curitiba, in the state of Paraná, in Brazil. The annex, which was launched on July 8, 2003, is to honor its famous architect who completed this project at 95 years of age. The first building, Castello Branco, was designed by Oscar Niemeyer in 1967, faithful to the style of the time, and conceived as an educational institute. It was remodeled and adapted to function as a museum, imprinting it with a new characteristic identity for a twenty-first-century museum of international building standard.

To the existing building he added a striking annex in the shape of an eye, constructed from reinforced concrete and mounted on a cubic plinth, and providing the shock factor so characteristic of Niemeyer’s work. With project architectural of Oscar Niemeyer, the building has 33,000 m² of constructed area of which 15,300 m² destined the expositions, inserted in a complex of 144.000 m² that it includes a forest (the Forest Pope João Pablo II) and the Village of the Culture that will occupy the constructions of the State Department of Official Transport (Deto).

The museum focuses on the visual arts, architecture and design. For its magnificence, beauty and for the importance of the collection, it represents a cultural institution of international significance. The existing building contains traditional museum facilities, including shops, restaurants and exhibition halls on three levels. The new building, designed for exhibitions and multimedia presentations, is on two floors with ceiling heights varying from 3 to 12 m, and contains a large exhibition space of 2,100 sq m. On the lower level are function areas and a bar, as well as audio-visual presentation spaces. The complex is a true example of architecture allied with art.

The two buildings are linked by winding ramps, while the curving one connects across pool to ‘the eye’. The whole complex initiates a dialogue with its surroundings, integrating with the disused warehouses around it which are now to be used as housing and spaces for courses, workshops and lectures. The whole area is to be turned into a cultural park and an important tourist attraction.

The audacious ‘eye’ structure, with its white rendered shell and diagonally gridded lens, was meticulously detailed using computer programs to facilitate the demanding 6 months construction program. The Oscar Niemeyer Museum features many of Niemeyer’s signature elements: bold geometric forms, sculptural curved volumes placed prominently to contrast with rectangular volumes, sinuous ramps for pedestrians, large areas of white painted concrete, and areas with vivid murals or paintings. Though rooted in modern architecture since his involvement in the international style, Niemeyer’s designs have much in common with postmodern architecture as well and this is a contemporary building as the artwork it displays.

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