Sao Paulo Brazil and MASP Art Museum

Lucked out again with the selection of a terrific hotel; the Estanplaza Paulista Hotel in Sao Paulo. It had everything; good price, lovely room, wonderful food, a morning buffet that stretched the length of the restaurant, and a great location. The pic (upper left) shows the view from my room, just a sample of the skyscrapers that cover the city. Within walking distance is the lovely MASP, the Museum de Arte de Sao Paulo. The entire museum is small (perhaps a fouth of a block in area) and it rests one story above the street level. You enter by riding a glass elevator that displays all its pulleys and gears during the ride. As with every museum, photos aren't allowed, but I can say that it is a jewel of a museum with significant works by Picasso, Delacroix, Joshua Reynolds, Modigliani, Manet, Renoir, Pousson, Rodin, and even a Bosch.
Rembrandt's etching of St Jerome held a reverential place in the exhibits, but I have to say my favorite painter was actually an artist from Sao Paulo, Candido Portinari (1903-1962). His paintings on display were massive, covering entire walls. Most depicted people going through extreme emotions such as Lazarus rising from the grave or a poor family that is burying a loved one. As large as the paintings are, they all seem to be too small to contain the passion and emotions of the people depicted. They are huge, ponderous figures that are almost bent from trying to stay within the confines of the canvas. He used mostly beiges and grays (like the colors in a sepia toned photo), but in very small and dramatic slashes, he used brilliant red to make a point; on a finger nail, or in the tears of the people who have lost a loved one. You can't view his pieces without carrying the impact away with you. Ironically, he died from the lead in the paint he used.
The MASP is a must see, as is the Parque do Ibirapuera, the next stop on my one person tour.