BRAD Pitt was in Avilés (Asturias) on Monday this week visiting renovation works on the city.

The Hollywood star, 45, wanted to glean ideas from the town’s revamp and offer his support.

Pitt is helping out with rebuilding New Orleans, which was seriously damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

For this reason, he was keen to see the new cultural centre, which is under construction in Avilés and due for opening next year.

The building will include an auditorium, gallery and spacious open-air terrace for summer activities.

It will be located in the port, which used to be a hive of activity before Avilés’ steel industry died out over 50 years ago.

The centre is the brainchild of architect Óscar Niemeyer, who designed the ultra-modern Brazilian capital, Brasilia, and a museum in the shape of a flying saucer in Niteroi, near Río de Janeiro.

Avilés’ local authorities hope Niemeyer’s splendid new building will have the same effect on the city as the futuristic Guggenheim Centre, designed by Frank Gehry, created in Bilbao.

The Basque city was once a gritty industrial area, considered grey and grim, and as a result of the Guggenheim was elected Cultural Capital at the end of the 1990s.