Style & Culture

The best shops in Paraty, Brazil

Once just a pit-stop on the way from Rio to Sao Paulo, this Brazilian beach town, wedged between ocean and forest, peacocks in the sun, inspiring eco-minded artisans
The best shops in Paraty Brazil
Marta Tucci

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  • A refreshing absence of loud shop signs helps to create Paratys lofi vibe. The unmarked Atelier de Cerâmica Lulu Silva...

    Beautiful ceramics in Paraty

    A refreshing absence of loud shop signs helps to create Paraty’s lo-fi vibe. The unmarked Atelier de Cerâmica Lulu Silva Telles is part workshop, part homeware store – though it could be mistaken for a kitchen, as ceramist Lulu Silva Telles leaves her creations to dry on the windowsill. Charming jugs, vases, egg cups, scalloped plates and chunky earthenware, the colour of raw clay or painted in olive green and pastel tones, are on display at the one-woman studio. You can also pick up Telles’s wonky version of fruit – imperfect ornaments with runny lines of blue – arranged in bowls.

    Address: Rue Cel. José Luiz, 194 - Centro Histórico, Paraty, 23970-000, Brazil

  • Fashion

    Lena Santana’s studio is tucked behind her namesake whitewashed boutique. Her clothes – cotton dresses with Miró-esque designs; silk screen-printed tunics – hang beside beach totes and swimwear, as well as eclectic antiques and kitsch tableware. Salvador-born and London-trained, Santana worked as a costume designer in Rio de Janeiro before setting up her own sustainably led label in Paraty. Pieces mix British punk influences with Brazil’s tropical colours, using responsibly sourced fabrics. Look out for her unique accessories, such as the oversized fabric collars, designed to be worn on top of other garments in clashing patterns.

    Address: Rua Comendador José Luiz, 16
    Centro Histórico, 23970-000, Brazil
    Website: lenasantana.com

    Brazillian spirits

    In Sítio Santo Antônio, a short ride from Paraty Bay, Cachaça Maria Izabel distillery and farm sits between dense jungle and ocean. Izabel’s brew is the stuff of local legend, using sugar cane grown and distilled on site with near-alchemic yeast-making skill. On top of this, she is also the formidable host of the farm’s tasting sessions. Bottles of the liquor can be bought at the shop for home-made Caipirinhas or from Empório da Cachaça, a small store in town which looks like a 16th-century pirate’s drinking cabinet and also sells exotic fruit jams.

    Address: Caixa Postal 75078 Sítio Santo Antônio, s/n - Corumbê, Paraty, Brazil
    Website: mariaizabel.com.br

  • Hip Hangouts in Paraty

    Paraty Wine Bar is a chilled, low-key space, but turns out strong cheese and Ibérico charcuterie platters to go with its bottles. Across the street is Montañita Cafés Especiais, a yellow-shuttered coffee shop that roasts speciality beans in small batches, showcasing Brazil’s best producers. The interior is pared-back, with large-scale, Matisse-style murals as the only decoration. Most blends are sold either as loose beans or ground coffee, and the Café da Casa comes in fun, cartoon-covered packages.

    Address: Rue da Matriz - Centro Histórico, Paraty - RJ, 23970-000, Brazil
    Website: cafesespeciais.com.br

    Books

    Livraria das Marés, set inside a colonial mansion, is a bookshop and culture hub that champions Brazilian literature, holding talks and workshops in an airy second-floor space that feels more New York’s MoMa than sleepy Paraty. Shelves are lined with limited editions, periodicals and architecture titles, while pastries by Belgian chef Frédéric de Maeyer are served in the ivy-covered garden.

    Address: Rue Ten. Francisco Antonio, 52 - Centro Histórico, Paraty - RJ, 23970-000, Brazil

  • Marta Tucci

    Traditional craft

    CANOA Arte Indígena sells creations by more than 40 collectives, from beaded jewellery and wooden sculptures to macramé wall hangings. Founded by Nina Taterka, the initiative (Centre for Native Arts Originating in the Americas) is designed to preserve local cultures and support artisans. Pick up clay Matis masks, braided Canela belts and intricate piassava baskets, made using a technique known to only 35 families in the region. The shop is involved with the Paraty Eco Festival and other community fairs that provide an insight into the area’s history of craftsmanship.

    Address: Rue Ten. Francisco Antonio, 364 - Centro Histórico, Paraty - RJ, 23970-000, Brazil

  • Marta Tucci

    Arts and prints

    At her eponymous gallery and studio, Atelier Patricia Sada, artist Sada uses reclaimed materials to create new works, painting her abstracts – a riff on Egon Schiele’s sketches – on ceramics, canvas and wood. Her drawings are easily packaged up for the journey home, as are the doorstops splashed with bright, animated faces. Sada works with wood certified by Brazil’s IBAMA environmental institute and uses pieces washed up on the beach. Over on rua do Comércio, Atelier Patrick Allien is known for its quirky posters and intricate etchings of the natural world.

    Address: Rue de Paraia, 70 Centro Historico, Paraty, Brazil
    Website: patriciasada.com

    Sculpture Culture

    After growing up in Provence, Aurelia Cerulei moved here to open her mixed-media gallery, A, a chapel of organised chaos circling a Victorian wrought-iron staircase. For her collage-sculptures, she turns broken pieces of crockery into textured maps, stitched together with thick red thread. Around the corner is Studio Bananal, run by Brazilian artists Fernando Fernandes and Sergio Atilano, selling free-standing pieces such as blocks of eroded driftwood washed in cobalt blue.

    Address: Rue Cel. José Luiz, 16 - Centro Histórico, Paraty - RJ, 23970-000, Brazil
    Website: studiobananal.com

  • Marta Tucci

    Where to stay in Paraty

    Le Gite d’Indaiatiba is a guesthouse and restaurant with a series of bungalows on the doorstep of the Atlantic Forest. The natural pool is surrounded by jungle, with short walks to waterfalls. In the historic centre, Pousada Literária’s walls are lined with worn books and terraces look out onto banana trees. Meanwhile, at Casa Turquesa, an 18th-century townhouse-turned-hotel, vibrant woven baskets are filled with sandals for guests to slip on and feel at home.

    Address: Rodovia Rio-Santos, Estr. Da Grauna, Km 562 - Graúna, Paraty; Rue do Comércio, 362 - Centro Histórico, Paraty; Rua Dr. Pereira, 50 - Centro Histórico, Paraty
    Website: [legitedindaiatiba.com;](https://legite dindaiatiba.com.br) pousadaliteraria.com.br; casaturquesa.com.br

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TopicsStyle & CultureShoppingBrazilSouth AmericaMagazineMay 2020 Issue