The modernist building in Gávea was built by the Moreira Salles banking family and has six exhibition spaces of various sizes able to accomodate the biggest collections or smallest displays. One of three such centres in Brazil housing the former ambassador to the United States' archive of over 500,000 photographs and a library of 400,000 books, the breadth of the man's ability to collect is astonishing. Excellent live music in the downstairs theatre and a good programme for children also occupies a good deal of the events calendar, whilst the gardens alone are worth a visit, offering a sublimely fresh stroll on a hot day.

Strongly recommended and a good excuse to have a look around an otherwise hidden corner of the city, for anybody who can't make it in person the archive can be accessed via the IMS website. From there users can search the entire collection, including images from the Paulistano Revolution of 1932, the first revolt against the Getúlio Vargas government and the last major armed conflict in Brazil. Ironically, it was Vargas that appointed Salles, who would have turned 100 in 2012, as Brazilian Ambassador to the United States, a post he stayed in for eight years.