WELCOME to the MUNIZVERSE

FROM A GATHERING SPACE TO HIS ART STUDIO AND THE COCKTAIL BAR OF HIS DREAMS, BRAZILIAN CONCEPTUALIST VIK MUNIZ IS CREATING A CULTURAL HUB IN THE COLOR-DRENCHED CAPITAL OF BAHIA.

- HILARIE M. SHEETS

The plant-fitted atrium at the center of Vik Muniz and Malu Barretto's studio building in Salvador, Brazil, which they designed witharchitect Brenda Bello and landscape designer Alex Sá.

For more than 25 years Vik Muniz, the Brazilian conceptual artist, has made regular trips to Salvador, a port city that is the capital of the country's Bahia region. He and his wife Malu Barretto, who are based in Rio de Janeiro and New York, have always loved the coastal town for its animated civic life and vibrant blend of music, gastronomy, religion, art, and architecture.

"Culturally speaking, Salvador is the most interesting place in Brazil, in my opinion," says Muniz, a native of São Paulo who is acclaimed for his photographic recreations of iconic images using unexpected materials such as chocolate syrup, toys, and garbage. "It's a pan-African mecca, really."

Muniz and Barretto, an events planner, are now actively participating in Salvador's cultural landscape. They recently restored a 19th-century cliffside rowhouse in Santo Antônio Além do Carmo, a residential neighborhood perched high above the Bay of All Saints. A three-minute walk from their house, with rooms for when their four children visit, is another historic building they have renovated. This annex houses an entertaining space with a veranda overlooking the water, Muniz's office and art atelier, a music studio for their oldest child, and three small apartments they offer to friends. "We consider this an extension of the house," Muniz says.

Barretto and Muniz walk from their rowhouse to their nearby annex, which is housed in a pair of converted 19th-century townhouses.