Sao Paulo marks the opening of the city art museum's new building with a Renoir exhibit

SAO PAULO (AP) — São Paulo is marking the opening of its famed art museum's new building with a Renoir exhibit and art lovers are already flocking to the Brazilian city.

The new, 14-story tower of Sao Paulo Museum of Art — better known as MASP after its initials and one of the country's most visited — opened its doors on March 28, bringing to completion its architectural vision 77 years after the museum was inaugurated.

The tower is named after the museum's first artistic director, Pietro Maria Bardi, and includes five exhibition galleries, two multi-purpose galleries, a restoration lab, classrooms, a restaurant, and a museum shop.

The 13 works by French impressionist Pierre-Auguste Renoir are a special draw and treat to visitors, while others come eager to see how the original red MASP building blends with the new addition on the Paulista Avenue, Brazil's most recognizable business road.

Next month, the museum will host an exhibition of works of Claude Monet, another French impressionist and an art fan favorite in Brazil.

The new building more than doubles the museum space to 7,821 square meters (84,184 square feet), increasing MASP's exhibition capacity by 66%. Its façade is made of perforated and pleated metal sheets, which add to the brutalist style conception of the original building next to it.

Construction started in 2019 and was entirely sponsored by donors who spent about 250 million Brazilian reais ($43 million) on the project, inspired by vertical museum typologies such as those in New York City, MASP said.

“MASP is the main museum in the Southern Hemisphere in terms of European art collection," said said Paulo Vicelli, MASP’s director for experience and communication. "We have more than 11,000 works; Amedeo Modigliani, Paul Cézanne, Vincent van Gogh, Rafael, the great masters. But also important artists from Brazil.”

“Art can transform people, the city," he added. "Everyone who comes leaves a different person.”

The original MASP building was in a different venue for 20 years but then in 1968 moved to the Paulista Avenue. The museum — a prime example of brutalism, a form characterized by exposed concrete structures, emphasis on raw materials and monumental scale — is the work of architect Lina Bo Bardi.

Over the years, it has become one of Sao Paulo's most recognizable touristic attractions.

“MASP has grown and become bigger than its building. It was necessary to push the boundaries,” said museum director Heitor Martins. “This is a historic moment. ... Two buildings form one museum.”

An underground walkway connecting the two buildings is expected to be completed in November. Until then, visitors will have to briefly step out on the busy Paulista Avenue to move from one building to the other.

Naira Regis de Moura, a 60-year old tourist from the southern city of Porto Alegre, said she was moved when she saw MASP's new tower. She came to Sao Paulo for a concert, but found a way to squeeze a museum visit into her schedule.

“This is a landmark for Brazilian art,” she said.

AP videojournalist Tatiana Pollastri in Sao Paulo, Brazil contributed to this report.

Visitors view an exhibition at the Sao Paulo Art Museum or MASP, in Sao Paulo, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

A visitor takes a photo of the "Pink and Blue - The Cahen d´Anvers Girls" painting by French impressionist Pierre-Auguste Renoir, at the Sao Paulo Art Museum or MASP, in Sao Paulo, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

An aerial view of the Sao Paulo Art Museum or MASP, and its new building, the black tall tower on the left, in Sao Paulo, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

Vehicles drive past the Sao Paulo Art Museum or MASP, in Sao Paulo, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

ARAFAT, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Muslim pilgrims from around the world congregated on Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, the second official day of the annual Islamic pilgrimage, considered the pinnacle of the Hajj.

Despite the sweltering heat, the pilgrims gathered on the rocky hill and surrounding plain for intense prayers and worship that often mark a spiritual peak for them. They fervently murmured prayers and poured their hearts out in supplications. Many raised their hands in worship. It is common for pilgrims on that day, some with tears streaming down their faces, to ask God for forgiveness, mercy, blessings and good health.

The Hajj, one of the Five Pillars of Islam, is required once in a lifetime for every Muslim who can afford it and is physically able to perform it.

For pilgrims, the Hajj, performed over several days, can be a deeply moving spiritual experience and a chance to seek God’s forgiveness and the erasure of past sins. As they brave the intense heat to perform religious rituals, many pilgrims have been using umbrellas for shade.

A Saudi official said on Friday that more than 1.5 million pilgrims have arrived in the country from abroad.

This year, Muslims have been pouring into Saudi Arabia for the Hajj against the backdrop of a tenuous ceasefire in the Iran war and related uncertainty in the region.

The U.S. military said Monday that it carried out “self-defense” strikes in southern Iran, including on missile launch sites and boats used to lay mines, even as President Donald Trump said on social media that negotiations with Tehran were “proceeding nicely." Iran on Tuesday denounced the most recent U.S. strikes as a sign of “bad faith and unreliability” as negotiations pressed on toward a possible deal to end the war.

For many, performing the Hajj can be a realization of a lifelong dream as they spend years hoping and praying to one day be able to undertake the pilgrimage or saving up money and waiting for a permit to embark on the trip.

“This happens once in a lifetime,” Mohammad Asal, an Egyptian pilgrim, said. “People here have prepared their prayers, hoping that God will respond to them, because we know that ... the most important ritual of the Hajj is being in Arafat.”

The Hajj brings together large numbers of Muslims of diverse races, ethnicities, languages and socioeconomic classes, creating a sense of unity for many. It’s a mass, communal experience, with Muslims performing rituals together. But it is also deeply personal, as every pilgrim brings their own yearnings and experiences.

“It was incredible,” Ahmed Sufyan, a pilgrim from the United States, said on Tuesday. “The unity and peace that we feel is something I’ve never experienced before,” he added via WhatsApp.

“Our wishes are many,” Mohammad Obaid, a Sudanese pilgrim, said, adding he was praying for Sudan and Muslims everywhere.

Fam reported from Winter Park, Florida.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

A Muslim pilgrim pray atop of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Muslim pilgrims walk towards the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Muslim pilgrims are silhouetted as they pray at top of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Muslim pilgrims pray at top of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

Muslim pilgrims read a copy of Islam's holy book Quran atop of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)