|
home Jesuits prayer apostolates Rome locator |
Murals by Brasilian artist Paulo Porcella
Unisinos is a surprising place on many counts. The name by which everyone knows the school is shorthand for "Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos" (University of the Valley of the River of Bells). It is the largest Jesuit university in the world with over 34,000 students and one of the most modern with classrooms wired for the latest technology. And it has a huge new library in the center of campus. On the ground floor of this imposing building one encounters eight murals painted in 1999 by Brazilian artist Paulo Porcella at the request of the university. Under the general title "The Way - a renovated vision of the Jesuits," Porcella's paintings portray the path of the Jesuits from the time of Saint Ignatius up to the present, with a special enphasis on the foundation of Unisinos. Each mural is 700cm by 300cm; together they span one whole side of a foyer that serves as a space for receptions, meetings and special events.
Most Jesuit schools stress their Jesuit identity; some place a statue of the founder of the Jesuits. But Unisinos commissioned Porcella to draw out the story of its identity in an amazingly rich and creative fashion with the eight murals. Born in 1936, Porcella has had a long and productive career as a painter and a teacher.