Santa Teresa (Rio de Janeiro)
Encyclopedia
Santa Teresa is the name of a neighbourhood in the city of Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

. It is located on top of the Santa Teresa hill, by the centre of Rio, and is famous for its winding, narrow streets which are a favourite spot for artists and tourists.

The neighbourhood originated around the Santa Teresa Convent, built in the 1750s on the Desterro hill. At the end of the 19th and early 20th century it was an upper class borough, as testified by its magnificent mansions, many of which are still standing.

In 1896, the Carioca Aqueduct
Carioca Aqueduct
The Carioca Aqueduct is an aqueduct in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The aqueduct was built in the middle of the 18th century to bring fresh water from the Carioca river to the population of the city...

, a colonial structure that used to bring water to the centre of Rio, was converted into a viaduct for the Santa Teresa Tramway (bondinho). The historic tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...

 line is still in operation today - the only one in Rio - and is a popular attraction among tourists. The ride starts in the city centre, near the Largo da Carioca square, crosses the old aqueduct and goes through the picturesque streets of the neighbourhood. Wonderful views of the city downhill can be appreciated.

Santa Teresa ceased being an upper class neighbourhood long ago, but it has been revived as an artistic hotspot. It is home to several artists and art studio
Studio
A studio is an artist's or worker's workroom, or the catchall term for an artist and his or her employees who work within that studio. This can be for the purpose of architecture, painting, pottery , sculpture, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, radio or television...

s and galleries
Art gallery
An art gallery or art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art.Museums can be public or private, but what distinguishes a museum is the ownership of a collection...

. The offer of restaurants and bars is also varied.

One of Santa Teresa's most illustrious inhabitants was Raimundo Otoni Castro Maya, an art collector who lived in his Chácara do Céu mansion in the neighbourhood. The mansion was turned into a museum (Museu da Chácara do Céu) and its exhibits include works by Picasso, Matisse, Monet, Jean Metzinger
Jean Metzinger
Jean Metzinger was a French painter.Metzinger was born in Nantes, France. Initially he was influenced by Fauvism and Impressionism, but from 1908 he was associated with Cubism. Metzinger was a member of the Section d'Or group of artists...

, Eliseu Visconti and Candido Portinari
Cândido Portinari
Candido Portinari was one of the most important Brazilian painters and also a prominent and influential practitioner of the neo-realism style in painting....

.

Another museum is the Museu do Bonde, which tells the history of the Santa Teresa tram since its origins, when it was pulled uphill by donkeys.

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