Ibirapuera Park () is an

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

. It comprises 158 hectares (approx. 390 acres) between Av. República do Líbano, Av. Pedro Alvares Cabral, and Av. IV Centenário, and is the most visited park in South America, with 14.4 million visits in 2017. Ibirapuera Park was the first metropolitan park in São Paulo, designed along the lines of other great

English landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (, , , , ), is a style of "landscape" garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, replacing the more formal ...

s built in the 20th century in major cities around the globe, but inspired on modern drafts from the landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx. It was inaugurated on 21 August 1954 for the 400th anniversary of the city of São Paulo with buildings designed by architect João Felipe Pereira and landscape by agronomist Otávio Augusto Teixeira Mendes. The construction of several pavilions in the park was controversial when the park was designed, and group of people advocated for an exclusively green park rather than one that included buildings. In the 90s, its green areas were graded heritage-listed status by the city and the state of

to avoid further construction and keep its historical gardens and green open spaces preserved. In 2016, the complex of buildings designed by Oscar Niemeyer, alongside Zenon Lotufo, Hélio Uchôa Cavalcanti, and others, in the park were also registered as national landmark by the National Historic and Artistic Heritage Institute. Ibirapuera is one of

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

's largest urban parks, together with Chapultepec Park in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

and Simón Bolívar Park in Bogota, and its iconic importance to São Paulo is often internationally comparable to that of

Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The park is often cited as one of the most vibrant and photographed parks in the world, as together with its large area for leisure, jogging and walking, it hosts a vivid cultural scene with museums, a music hall, and popular events such as

São Paulo Fashion Week The São Paulo Fashion Week is a clothing trade show held semi-annually in São Paulo, Brazil. It is notable as "Latin America's pre-eminent fashion event" and it is of the emerging fashion weeks, outside the ''Big Four'' of New York Fashion Week ...

, congresses and trade shows. It is claimed to be the most visited

in South America, is listed as one of the best parks in the world, and has been described as "a green oasis at the heart of a concrete jungle". The park has been managed for decades by the city of São Paulo, but the local government plans to concession all its parks' management to private hands, starting with Ibirapuera Park. Since 2014, the park also has the support of the Ibirapuera Park Conservancy ('' Parque Ibirapuera Conservação''), a strong community

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

that supports park stewardship and conservation actions through a capital improvement plan, engagement projects and volunteer work. Admission to the park has been free since 1954, and it is open from 5am until midnight every day.

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Ibirapuera
at São Paulo Department of Parks and Green Areas {{Authority control 1954 establishments in Brazil Oscar Niemeyer buildings Parks in São Paulo Protected areas established in 1954 Protected areas of São Paulo (state) Urban public parks National heritage sites of São Paulo (state)

See also

References

External links