After the pavilion of the first São Paulo Art Biennale was located on the site in 1951, Lina Bo Bardi presented her innovative design to the city for the first time in 1957: a glass cube standing on four huge concrete pillars. Although it is an art museum, the site of the São Paulo Museum of Art accommodates a wide range of uses: an auditorium, a restaurant and exhibition rooms are set in the square's underground, and other gallery spaces are located on the upper floor, while the street level offers an open space for public programmes, which also means that the view down Avenida Paulista remains unobstructed.

In use. In 1990 part of the structure was painted red.