Ayrton Senna Monument, Bronze and granite monument in Vila Mariana District, Brazil.
The Ayrton Senna Monument, titled Velocidade, Alma e Emoção, is a bronze sculpture by Melinda Garcia measuring 5 metres long and 2.5 metres high and weighing about two tonnes. Since 2017 it has stood on a raised spot in the Praça Ayrton Senna do Brasil, inside the Modelódromo sports and leisure centre in Ibirapuera Park, surrounded by the flags of Brazil, the state and the city of São Paulo.
Sculptor Melinda Garcia's bronze work was inaugurated in October 1995, when the surrounding sports complex opened. In April 2017 it was moved from the entrance of the Ayrton Senna Tunnel to the Praça Ayrton Senna do Brasil inside the Modelódromo do Ibirapuera; the square was inaugurated on 1 May 2017 by mayor João Doria, with the pilot's sister Viviane Senna present.
The monument's official name is Velocidade, Alma e Emoção (Speed, Soul, Emotion). Since May 2017 it has stood in the Praça Ayrton Senna do Brasil, inaugurated by mayor João Doria with the driver's sister Viviane Senna present. The bronze helmet beside it is a replica, and the sculpture carries a replacement for its original flag, stolen in 2004.
Since May 2017 the sculpture stands on a raised spot in Praça Ayrton Senna do Brasil, inside the Modelódromo sports and leisure centre of Ibirapuera Park, in the Paraíso neighbourhood. The piece and the bronze helmet replica beside it have dedicated lighting, so the square can be visited after dark. The surrounding flags of Brazil, the state and the city help visitors locate the monument within the roughly 15,000 m² square.
The bronze helmet beside the sculpture is a cast replica, and the flag that formed part of the work is also a copy: the original was stolen in 2004. The piece was fully restored with private funding before the square opened on 1 May 2017.
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