"In 1989, the Government of São Paulo State held the contest “Bandeirantes Panel.
The aim was to choose for the Palace’s Noble Hall, a work full of meaning to the history of São Paulo.
The winner was Antonio Henrique Amaral with the work “São Paulo - Brazil: creation, expansion and development”.
As you observe the work, what elements and colors can you relate to the history of São Paulo and Brazil? Let’s get to know some moments of this history Antonio Henrique painted?
In the center of the painting, we see the tower of Pateo do Collegio’s Church, the first building in São Paulo and also the first seat of São Paulo’s Government, among exuberant nature, highlighted by bamboos, foliage and bananas.
From the center to the left, canoes enter the rivers in different directions. It is the beginning of pioneering the backcountry by São Paulo’s pioneers (the ‘Bandeirantes’). In the second strip, in blue, the march continues featuring the mountains and valleys that were crossed. What did they find on the way? In the next strip, precious stones and metals are represented by the colored cubes.
On the right side of the painting, the artist represented important economic cycles. He started with sugar cane plantations, moved on to coffee, represented by its red fruits, and then industrialization with its factories and large smoking chimneys.
The last three strips on each side represent the first settlements and their unstoppable growth with houses and more houses, buildings and constructions in this great “Concrete Jungle”.
Throughout this history, the artist kept the green, pointing up the urgency and the need to respect nature and preserve the environment.
With these topics in mind, do you think the story was well represented? What other moments would you add to it? How would you represent São Paulo today, with so many stories, culture and diversity?"