Biblioteca Brasiliana Guita e José Mindlin

The Brasiliana Library Guita e José Mindlin houses one of the richest collections of Brazilian materials in the country, consisting of around 60,000 volumes. The collection donated to USP by the Mindlin family brings together materials about Brazil or that, having been written and/or published by Brazilians, are important for understanding the country’s culture and history.

Mission

To preserve, promote, and disseminate its collection of Brazilian materials and to value Brazil’s cultural and intellectual heritage.

Vision

To offer broad and democratic access to the bibliographic and documentary collection, establishing itself as a center of excellence for academic research, knowledge production, and the enrichment of society. The aim is to consolidate the Library as a national and international reference, contributing to the preservation and valorization of Brazilian history, literature, art, and culture.

Values

• Preservation: Preservation of the Brazilian bibliographic and documentary heritage, ensuring its integrity, conservation, and accessibility to present and future generations.
• Access and inclusion: Promotion of broad and inclusive access to the physical and digital collection.
• Excellence: Commitment to excellence in all stages of activities, from the selection and acquisition of materials to the provision of services.
• Cultural diversity: Embracing and promoting the plurality of perspectives, voices, and experiences present in the collection.
• Innovation and technology: Adoption of new technologies and approaches to expand access to the collection.
• Collaboration: Valuing partnerships and collaborations with national and international institutions, researchers, academics, and the community at large.

Anual Reports:

The Brasiliana Library Guita e José Mindlin (BBM), an entity of the Pro-Rectorate for Culture and University Extension of USP, was created in January 2005, and its building – the Brasiliana USP Complex, also comprising the Institute of Brazilian Studies (IEB), the Edusp Bookstore, and the István Jancsó Auditorium – was inaugurated in March 2013. It houses the Brazilian collection gathered over 80 years by the bibliophile José Mindlin, whose donation to the University of São Paulo was made by him and his wife Guita, and consolidated by their children.

With its significant collection of books and manuscripts, the BBM is considered the most important collection of its kind formed by an individual. It comprises approximately 30,000 titles: works of Brazilian literature, travelers’ accounts, historical and literary manuscripts (originals and typographic proofs), periodicals, scientific and educational books, iconography (prints and illustrated albums), art books, and artists’ books (engravings). Part of the donated collection belonged to the bibliophile Rubens Borba de Moraes, and it was incorporated into the collection to which it was bequeathed in his will. It is a library whose renowned Brazilian materials have become known in the country and abroad as a unique collection, the work of a lifetime dedicated to Brazilian culture and its manifestations.

Users wishing to access any item from the collection can consult it in the “Rubens Borba de Moraes Reading Room,” for which all information is available on the BBM website (www.bbm.usp.br). There is also the Digital Collection – the result of work carried out by the Library’s Digitization Laboratory – equally available on the aforementioned website, where users can search, view, and download over 3,000 titles from the collection, which thus remains available to the entire community in a democratic and universal manner.

The BBM also has the Guita Mindlin Preventive Conservation Laboratory (LAGUIM), responsible for continuing the important work of book conservation and preservation carried out by Guita Mindlin. It also has spaces for exhibitions and temporary shows.

To access the Biblioteca Brasiliana Guita e José Mindlin, click here.