Lecture Series Fine Art – Ana Druwe

On Porous Institutions: Casa do Povo

Museums, cultural centers, and autonomous spaces should function as what architect Yona Friedman called feasible utopias – exercises in imagination, laboratories for new ways of living, rehearsals of togetherness. An institution conceived in this way need not swallow the world; it need only embrace it, focusing on intensifying their role, treating their infrastructures as practice-critical gestures enabling forms of coexistence and conviviality. To remain relevant, they must cultivate porosity – the capacity for adaptation and continuous reinvention.

This talk examines institutional porosity through the case of Casa do Povo, a cultural center operating at the intersection of memory, community, and culture. Established by São Paulo’s jewish community over 70 years ago, it has served as an experimental primary school, a theater of resistance, a newspaper office, a Yiddish choir, and a hub for diasporic experience. In the present times, it functions as a platform for diverse initiatives, from a boxing academy and free psychoanalysis sessions to independent publishers and activist groups -- each responding to the evolving demands of its surroundings, understanding culture as a form of care.

Ana Druwe is a cultural organizer, communications researcher, and editor based in São Paulo. Currently a LIAS Fellow at Leuphana University, she is interested in collaborative processes, cultural mediation, and storytelling. Since 2015, she has been the Head of Communications at Casa do Povo, a cultural center in São Paulo, where she also edits publications such as Nossa Voz, a free magazine rooted in the Bom Retiro community. She holds a MSc in Communication Sciences from the University of São Paulo and a BA in Visual Arts from the Unesp Institute of Arts.