On the boundaries of a suspended volume and a terraced plinth, the Museum of Art of São Paulo frames a collective space that functions as an agora and invites citizens to become part of the museum. In order to preserve the views over the northern part of the city, two huge porticoes span a distance of seventy meters towards Avenida Paulista.

Two upper beams support the roof and two beams that rest on brackets support the art gallery slab, generating between them a prism with no structural obstacles. The artworks are displayed on glass stands to ensure a maximum visual and spatial continuity. The lower slab hangs from the intermediate beams by means of four rows of tensioned cables. This system allows to adjust the length of the braces to compensate the deformation at the center of the void, creating a totally horizontal plane over the public esplanade. During the long construction process there were several interruptions due to administrative issues, and the project was adapted to the different technical challenges. The enclosure was originally opaque, but it was replaced by glass in 1966, six years after the construction works had begun.