The Memorial project

Besides the replica of the Mestre’s house, which for some years was the Headquarters of the UDV, the Memorial will have a study center with a meeting and screening room, archive rooms (with CDs, videos, tapes, photos and testimonies), a library and facilities such as a kitchenette and restrooms, as well as an auditorium for lectures, workshops and screenings of videos on the history of the UDV and of Mestre Gabriel. A place where everyone interested can learn more about the work and life of our great Mestre, an example of humility, showing that simplicity is the most practical path to God.

Program of needs

The José Gabriel da Costa Memorial will be built as two spaces, in two separate stages. Simple, both in its architectural concept and in its story.

It was designed to show the path and growth of a man who migrated from Brazil’s Northeast to the Amazon as a “rubber soldier”; the caboclo of the forest, the creation of the União do Vegetal and its growth to the present day. It will recreate yesterday and today, preserving the essence of each phase as faithfully as possible.

On the first level, at the front of the lot, will stand the replica of the house where Mestre Gabriel lived with his family, which was also the Headquarters of the UDV for many years. The house will be set back eight meters from the sidewalk, as required by the city building code, a space that will also serve as parking.

Behind the house, a three-story building with modern lines and materials will be divided as follows:

Ground floor

• Reception
• Permanent exhibition hall
• Thematic exhibition hall (art, book launches, exhibitions etc.)
• Kitchenette
• Storeroom
• Accessible men’s and women’s restrooms
• Emergency exits with fire doors
• Stairs and elevator

First floor

• Reception
• AJGC offices
• Study Center
• Accessible men’s and women’s restrooms
• Emergency exits with fire doors
• Stairs and elevator

Second floor

• Reception
• Auditoriums
• Meeting room
• Accessible men’s and women’s restrooms
• Emergency exits with fire doors
• Stairs and elevator

The project

The José Gabriel da Costa Memorial will be built in two blocks: the first, the replica of the house where Mestre Gabriel lived with his family and where the Headquarters of the UDV was while the Mestre was in matter; the second, a building with rooms to house the collection and make it available for study and research on the Vegetal, with a library, a multimedia room, an exhibition hall, a bookstore, a snack bar and an auditorium.

Searching for, acquiring, building and integrating the collection

This is being done by the DMCs (Memory and Documentation Departments). That is why harmony and partnership between the Association and the General Headquarters and General Board are so important.

Ayahuasca Study and Research Center

• Training of the coordinators of the José Gabriel da Costa Memorial
• Training of administrative staff and executive management
• Study and application of museum techniques and museology
• Training of monitors in the Núcleos

This project aims to train the monitors of the Núcleos and Authorized Distributions of the CEBUDV in techniques for researching, finding and storing information within scientific thinking, and to establish the practice of applying the Center’s Memory and Documentation Department Manual.

With the Memorial in place, new specialties will be needed, which may inspire our young people and adults professionally, such as restorers, museologists, librarians, historians, cultural producers, anthropologists, editors, educators and interns.