Instituto Moreira Salles | IMS Poços

We welcome you to Instituto Moreira Salles. The following audio tells a little about our headquarters in Poços de Caldas.

“A white box embedded in the land”, this is how Mexican architect Aurélio Martinez Flores (1929-2015) defined his project for Instituto Moreira Salles in Poços de Caldas.

Minimalist elegance, rigorous geometric design and precise volume make the building cut out its profile in the city's landscape and produce an intentional (and particular of Martinez Flores' projects) conflict with the surroundings.

The pavilion of around 1,000 square meters stands out for its simplicity and the use of white, “the color that best matches people’s clothing”, according to the architect.

In August 1992, Poços de Caldas was the first city to house a cultural center of Instituto Moreira Salles, by decision of its founder, Walther Moreira Salles (1912-2001). This was a means of paying homage to the place where the Moreira Salles family settled in the beginning of the 20th century.

Instituto Moreira Salles currently maintains cultural centers also in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.