Once a foundry for the manufacturing of safes and ovens, Fundição Progresso today hosts avant-garde exhibitions, concerts and samba performances throughout the year. There's also a cafe, a bar and a shop selling locally made apparel and accessories. The building is one of the few in the area that survived the 1950s neighborhood redistricting project to widen Av República do Paraguai.
The center also hosts the occasional art exhibition. If you're sticking around Rio for a while, you can sign up for classes in capoeira, dance, yoga and theater arts.
