Memorial Brumadinho: architecture that embraces pain and memory and gives new meaning to the site of the tragedy
The Memorial Brumadinho, designed by Gustavo Penna Arquitetos Associados (GPAA), is a space of memory and resistance, built to honor the 272 victims of the collapse of the Mina Córrego do Feijão tailings dam in Brumadinho, Brazil. Located on the site of the rupture, the project proposes a path of immersion, reflection, and learning about the brutal errors that caused the tragedy.
Belo Horizonte, January 2025 – Six years after the country’s worst humanitarian tragedy, the Memorial Brumadinho has opened to the public as a space dedicated to the 272 lives lost in the collapse of the Córrego do Feijão dam in Brumadinho (MG).
The project emerged from the historic mobilization of the victims’ families and was developed in close collaboration with them, with the goal of welcoming grief, preserving stories, and transforming the site of the tragedy into a territory of reflection, learning, resistance, and transformation.
It is an in situ memorial, meaning it is located at the exact place where the event occurred, like other international memorials such as the Cais do Valongo in Rio de Janeiro, the main port of entry for enslaved Africans in the Americas; the Espacio Memoria y Derechos Humanos (ESMA) in Argentina; the National September 11 Memorial in the United States; and the Auschwitz Memorial in Poland.

Entrance: shock and reflection
The design stems from an ethical commitment to give voice to the memory of the victims and to give new meaning to the space marked by tragedy through a symbolic and sensitive interpretation. Every element of the Memorial was designed to connect visitors to the impacts of the event and to invite reflection on what happened.
The entrance pavilion, with its twisted and fragmented shape, symbolizes the shock of the rupture and the overwhelming force of the mud. Made of concrete mixed with mining tailings pigment, the building confronts visitors with the brutality of the tragedy while suggesting the possibility of new paths through the slivers of light that pierce the darkness.
Inside, a druse of crystals occupies a central place, paying tribute to the “jewels,” the term used by the victims’ families to refer to their loved ones lost in the tragedy. Every year on January 25 at 12:28 p.m. (the exact time of the collapse), a beam of light crosses the space and illuminates the crystals, representing the light that was missing on that day.

A path of memory and transformation
The path cuts through the land toward the rupture. It is a line in time and space pointing to the site of the colossal fracture. It is a carved fissure, an indelible witness to what happened.
The Monument to the victims becomes a passage, between names and memories, beneath a suspended sculpture. The 230-meter-long route evokes both the fragility of the human condition in the face of overwhelming consequences and the course of mourning, giving materiality to an intimate process that unfolds in personal rhythms.
The cleft-like morphology induces introspection, as once inside it the only visible horizon is the framed view at its end. Its direct and striking perspective guides the gaze of those who walk through it and alludes to the void left by what happened.
On the side walls are the names of each of the people who were taken by the tragedy. They emerge one by one as visitors walk through, like stories inscribed on the surfaces.
At the central point of the project, an 11 x 11 meter square sculpture rises as a suspended head over the path, representing humanity in its fallibility. The tilted, unstable square shape symbolizes the rationality that was brutally betrayed by the rupture. From its geometric eyes flow tears that form a veil over the concrete walls. Water, as a symbol of memory and purification, runs through the space until it reaches the reflecting pool below the lookout, where grief meets contemplation.

Memory and Testimony Rooms
Walking through the fissure, visitors reach the Memory Room and the Testimony Room, conceived by scenographer Júlia Peregrino in collaboration with the families. These spaces are dedicated to preserving the history of the tragedy and honoring the 272 victims through photos and personal objects. This is also where the bodily segments of the victims are kept, in an area designed with dignity and profound respect.

Lookout, forest and re-signification of the landscape
The lookout point at the end of the path reveals the landscape transformed by the mud. It is a contemplative space that invites reflection and offers a view of the impact and the re-signification of the territory, now dedicated to memory and hope.
The landscape design acts as a seam between the building and the land. A grove of 272 yellow ipê trees was planted in tribute to each life lost. These trees, symbols of resilience, bloom in adversity and stand in contrast to the earthy tones of mining, bringing the idea of rebirth and continuity of life, as well as prompting reflection on the environmental impacts of the disaster.
The ipês, along with the sinuous paths and organic trails, create multiple routes that allow visitors to reconfigure their own journeys. These elements reinforce the connection between architecture and nature, promoting an immersive experience that respects the memory of the place.
The Memorial also includes a meditative space integrated into the landscape: a large hall with a variable ceiling height that opens to the garden. Its activities can extend to the external amphitheater, reinforcing the collective and community character of the project. These spaces were designed to foster a more intimate encounter with memory, creating an environment of welcome and introspection.

Materiality and memory
Every detail of the Memorial Brumadinho was conceived to carry profound meaning. The use of concrete mixed with mining tailings pigment ties the architecture to the ground and reinforces the project’s connection to the site of the tragedy. The simplicity of the materials, combined with the symbolism of each space, creates a dialogue between memory, resilience, and transformation.
“The Memorial Brumadinho is a place where architecture meets memory. It embraces pain and transforms it into resistance against forgetting, giving new meaning to the site of the tragedy. It is a place to remember stories that cannot be erased, but also to move forward knowing these voices continue to echo within us,” says Gustavo Penna, architect of the project.