Portuguese Language Museum celebrates Saramago’s 100th birthday
The installation The Tale of the Unknown Island, inspired by the eponymous short story by Portuguese writer José Saramago (1922–2010), is on display at the Museu da Língua Portuguesa—the Museum of the Portuguese Language—in São Paulo until July 24. Children visiting the museum can also attend the workshops offered as part of project Estação Férias – Lugares para Mirar.
“It’s a special vacation program from Tuesday to Sunday, featuring activities inspired by José Saramago’s The Tale of the Unknown Island, because the Museum of the Portuguese Language is one of the institutions celebrating his 100th birthday,” said Marília Bonas, technical director at the museum. “Saramago’s known as a difficult author. But his production is vast and also includes literature for children and young adults. The Tale of the Unknown Island is a book for all ages and we selected it because it manages to bring different generations together. This is one of the museum’s commitments: to broaden horizons when it comes to literature,” she added.
The Tale of the Unknown Island deals with making dreams come true. A man wants to travel to an unknown island, so he asks for a boat from the king, who wants to find out how his subject knows about the island, since it is unknown. All islands are unknown until someone lands on them, the man replies. The tale can be interpreted in a myriad of ways, and the museum aims to provide a fun experience to the public.
The experience starts with the installation created by the Pia Fraus theater company, featuring a seven-meter long inflatable boat. On the boat are puppets made with a wide range of materials, representing the characters from the story. The boat is open for visitation daily.
Tables have been arranged next to the boat for the vacation activities and workshops. There is room for writing, reading, and arts and crafts, and kids can use a typewriter to write their requests to the king. This is what João Augusto, 13, and Matheus, 11, did.
“I asked the king for another boat so I could have more people on board,” Matheus said. His cousin João Augusto made a more personal request. “I asked the king to turn me into a soccer player,” he said.
João and Matheus joined the activities after a visit to the museum. Matheus loved what he found there. “The museum tells the story of the [Portuguese] language, of the people. It’s so cool! And a lot of fun! The part I liked the most was the totems, which show people speaking other languages. You get to know a little bit of other languages too,” he said.
Business administrator Silvana Watanabe also used the museum visit as an opportunity to explore the area dedicated to Saramago with her two daughters and her niece. “We came and ended up seeing this exhibition. The girls saw a typewriter for the first time, and they absolutely loved it. They also liked the rubber stamp,” she told Agência Brasil.
Watanabe says she takes her daughters to museums often. “Culture is very important for children. To experience it personally and being able to touch it is a lot more fun than just studying it in school,” she argued.
