Description

Essentials about the Escadaria Selarón in brief

A staircase as a tourist attraction? It may sound a little strange, but anyone who has seen the Escadaria Selarón (Selarón Staircase) with their own eyes will know why it is one of the most famous and popular attractions in Rio de Janeiro. The 125 meter long staircase with its 215 steps connects Rua Joaquim Silva with Rua Pinto Martins and is a very popular way to climb up from the Lapa district to the higher Santa Teresa neighborhood.

The history of the Escadaria Selarón

The staircase is the work of its namesake Jorge Selarón, a Chilean painter and sculptor who settled in Rio in 1983. In 1990, Selarón began renovating the dilapidated steps in front of his house. His neighbors were initially not particularly pleased with Selarón’s renovation work, as he chose to use colorful tile fragments in the Brazilian national colors of blue, green and yellow.

What began as a sideline quickly developed into an obsession for Selarón. The artist was constantly in need of money and had to finance the work on the staircase by selling other works of art. In the early days, Selarón scoured construction sites looking for suitable tiles. However, in later years, as word of the work on the staircase spread around the world, he received gifts of tiles from all over the world for his work. Today, the Escadaria Selarón contains over 2,000 tiles from more than 60 countries around the world.

Selarón was obsessed with his work on the staircase. As soon as he finished one section, he would begin redesigning an already finished section. The staircase was thus a living, ever-changing work of art for many years. According to Selarón, work on this crazy and unique dream would only end with his death. In 2013, Selarón was found under mysterious circumstances with burns on the steps of “his” staircase. To date, the exact circumstances of his death have not been clarified. Due to his depressive state just before his death, suicide is suspected as the most likely cause of death.

Website

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Opening hours

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Admission fees

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Address

Getting there

By public transport:

Metro lines L1, L2 and L4: Stop Cinelândia

Bus lines 010, 101, 102, 104, 238, 247, 362, 386, 409, 433, 434, 464, 497, 517, 1910D, 1920D and 5721D: Stop Rua Teixeira de Freitas próximo ao 771 und 21-05

By car:

The nearest parking garage is Estapar Estacionamentos.