Trabalho Museum Picture 6

More information on Trabalho Museum Photo by: Lívia B. Auler

Founded on December 7, 1982, the Museum of Labor was part of a larger project of preservation and restoration of ancient Usina do Gasometro, then abandoned by Eletrobrás.

Aiming to prevent the demolition of the building, a group of students and teachers, PUCRS - Pontificia Universidade Catolica do RGS, led by sociologist Marcos Flávio Soares, initiated a broad public debate on the fate of the plant. Thanks to this action in 1983 the building was listed as Historical Patrimony of the State.

The initial plan of the occupation of Usina do Gasômetro could not be implemented and the Museum of Labor was installed in its temporary headquarters in houses located at the beginning of  Rua da Praia, owned by the Navy of Brazil, where it remains today.

Despite this the museum followed by structuring itself in 1986 and already had a large collection of machines, tools, movies, pictures and documents relating to labor and social history.

With headquarters and a collection formed, the museum, which receives no public funds because it is a civil entity, sought mechanisms that would generate its own resources for maintenance and growth. Then begins the birth of a new cultural space for the city.

In 1987 in one of the sheds attached to the museum was set up the Theatre of the Museum of Labor. His first successful experience was with the New Theatre Company, Ronald Radde, a partnership that lasted 10 years.

In other houses, there was the reassignment of the exhibition of machinery and tools for deploying a studio arts, specifically the graphics. And in 1987 some artists, among them Gill Danube, began what would become one of the most extensive and complete picture of the state workshops.

In the same period the Museum of Labor opened an exhibition hall - a hall that in its 19 years of existence has promoted over 200 shows, including solo and group exhibitions by local artists, Brazilian and international.

In 2004 a more successful partnership was added to the space of the Museum of Labor, the Terps Dance Co. of Charlotte Albuquerque. The group has held since then the room attached to the theater, offering courses, seminars and activities related to dance, music and theater.

The Museum of Labor keeps up with funds from its cultural activities such as theater performances, courses and arts consortia of prints and sculptures. This emphasizes the importance of direct involvement with the museum community and ensures sustainability.

In the 25 years of uninterrupted activity, despite the difficulties, the Museum of Labor not only solidified its own identity as created space for alternative, independent and active, now important for the cultural setting in Porto Alegre.

Address: Rua dos Andradas 230, 90020000 Porto Alegre

Phone Number: 51 32275196

Homepage: http://www.museudotrabalho.org

Hours of Operation: Tuesdays to Sundays from 1:30pm to 6:30pm

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