77, 28 DE SETEMBRO BOULEVARD
Pedro Ernesto University Hospital

DESIGNED BY JACQUES EMILE PAUL PILON (FRANCE, 1905 – S. PAULO, 1962), 1950 C.

Today we address the outstanding art déco façade of the Pedro Ernesto University Hospital – Pedro Ernesto, for the close ones, or HUPE, for those even closer. The architect Jacques Pilon is not very well known in Rio de Janeiro, but in São Paulo, where he arrived in 1934 to establish the Pilmat (Mat for Matarazzo), until his death, he is worshiped as one of the best “Brazilian” architects of his time. His are the designs of Maison de France and Chopin buildings, in Rio, besides the Jaraguá Building and Mario de Andrade Public Library, in São Paulo, among many others.

In the picture we see part of the vertical strip that divides the construction in two halves. It is formed by five stacked square bas-reliefs, repeated 3 times, making up a total of 15 bas-reliefs.

The motifs – it couldn´t be any different – allude to the hospital activity. There we see several biomedical professionals´ working instruments: the pressure gauge, the stethoscope, the shelf with test tubes, the weighing scale, the microscope, the mortar, the glove, scissors and even a guinea pig.