In October 2013, the Portinari Project opened the 'War and Peace, by Portinari' exhibition in the city of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais. The event also marked the reopening of the iconic Cine Theatro Brasil, a movie theater that has left its mark since the 1930s and was closed to the public for 14 years.
The exhibition took over the entire Cine Theatro, providing visitors with the opportunity to appreciate not only the imposing War and Peace panels, but also more than 60 preparatory studies and a hundred documents that reveal the renowned artist's creative process. An entire floor has been dedicated to Portinari's life and work, as well as the history of the Portinari Project, featuring a chronology and an interactive touch-screen table with biographies of the artist's friends and contemporaries.
The exhibition in Belo Horizonte introduced two new features: an installation of sculptures by Sérgio Campos - D'après Portinari, and an exhibition of embroidery by the Minas Gerais group Matizes Dumont, inspired by the preparatory studies for War and Peace.
The Education Programme organized guided tours for school groups, offering workshops and activities that mobilized all participants to create a culture of peace by learning about Portinari's life, work and thinking. The program welcomed more than 11,000 children, young people and adults.
Over the course of forty days, the exhibition welcomed more than 80,000 visitors, establishing itself as a success with the public and a celebration of Candido Portinari's unique contribution to Brazilian art and culture.
