Oscar Niemeyer (Rio de Janeiro RJ 1907 - Rio de Janeiro RJ 2012) was one of the greatest Brazillian architects and urbanists. He is celebrated in Brazil and across the world for his extraordinary work. Niemeyer may be known for his acclaimed architecture, but his lesser-known qualities are his relentless desire to design and his determination to resist conformity.
Niemeyer graduated in architecture from the National School of Fine Arts (Enba), in Rio de Janeiro, in 1934. That same year, he worked for the architect and urban planner Lucio Costa (1902-1998). In 1936, the office was commissioned to create plans for the Ministry of Education and Health (MES), in Rio de Janeiro, under the supervision of the French-Swiss architect Le Corbusier(1887-1965), whom Niemeyer assisted, as a draftsman. Based on the architect's design, Niemeyer suggested changes that were consequently implemented into the construction of the building. Between 1940 and 1944, at the request of mayor Belo Horizonte, Juscelino Kubitschek (1902-1976), Niemeyer designed the Pampulha Architectural Ensemble, which is considered a landmark of his work. It breaks with the strict concepts of functionalism, using a new language of forms, curved surfaces, and explores the possibilities of reinforced concrete. In 1947, he was invited by the United Nations (UN) to participate in the commission of architects in charge of outlining the plans for New York's future headquarters. His plans, conceptualized by Le Corbusier, were chosen as the basis for the final project.
In Rio de Janeiro, in 1955, he founded the magazine Módulo. The President of the Republic, Juscelino Kubitschek, invited Niemeyer to collaborate on Lucio Costa's urban design of the new capital of Brazil, Brasília, the following year. In 1958, he was appointed chief architect of Brasília, where he transferred to and remained until 1960. Some of Niemeyer's more notable projects are Ibirapuera Park, São Paulo, 1951, the headquarters of the French Communist Party, Paris, 1965 Algiers School of Architecture, Algeria, 1968 the headquarters of Editora Mondadori, Milan, Italy, 1968 and the headquarters of the newspaper L'Humanité, Saint-Denis, France, 1987.
CRAFTING MODERNITY: DESIGN IN LATIN AMERICA, 1940–1980
NEW YORK
THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
MAR 08 – SEP 22 (2024)
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The Museum of Modern Art presents "Crafting Modernity: Design in Latin America, 1940–1980," marking a milestone as the first exhibition by a major American museum to comprehensively explore modern design in the region. The museum will showcase over 100 pieces created by Latin American designers and architects, allowing visitors to view pieces by designers such as Luis Barragán or Lina Bo Bardi.
LE CORBUSIER & OSCAR NIEMEYER
BARCELONA
SIDE GALLERY
SEP 14 2018 - JAN 31 2019
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Bringing together two of the greatest architects of all times, Side Gallery navigated through time creating a dialogue between two masters of modern architecture. LE CORBUSIER & OSCAR NIEMEYER Influences and counter influences on modern design (1929-1965) opened in the fall of 2018 at Side Gallery, Barcelona.
BRAZILIAN DESIGN
(PART ONE)
BARCELONA
SIDE GALLERY
OCT 10 2016 - DEC 01 2016
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In the Autumn of 2016, Side Gallery presented an exhibition focused entirely on Brazilian twentieth century modernist design. Pieces by Lina Bo Bardi, Branco e Preto, Jose Zanine Caldas, Joaquim Tenreiro, Sergio Rodrigues and Oscar Niemeyer were presented for the very first time in Spain, introducing Brazilian modern design to an European audience.
MODERNO: DESIGN FOR LIVING IN BRAZIL, MEXICO AND VENEZUELA, 1940-1978
NEW YORK CITY
AMERICAS SOCIETY
FEB 11 1994 - MAY 16 2015
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Moderno: Design for Living in Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela, 1940–1978 explored how design transformed the domestic landscape of Latin America in a period marked by major stylistic developments and social political changes. Away from the mass destruction of World War II, many Latin American countries entered a period of economic growth in the late 1940s and continuing through the 1950s, which resulted in the modernization of major cities.
LATIN AMERICAN IN CONSTRUCTION:
ARCHITECTURE 1955-1980
NEW YORK CITY
MOMA
MAR 29 2018 - JUL 19 2015
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In 1955 the Museum of Modern Art in New York opened a landmark exhibition: Latin American Architecture Since 1945. On the 60th anniversary of that significant show, the Museum returned to the region to offer a complex overview of the positions, debates, and architectural creativity from Mexico and Cuba to the Southern Cone between 1955 and the early 1980s. MoMA had never again mounted a full-scale study of the region’s architecture, until 2015. Latin America in Construction: Architecture 1955–1980 brought together a wealth of materials that divulged the audience into a thought-provoking exploration of the architectural response to the ongoing modernization of Latin America.
OSCAR NIEMEYER. THE MAN
WHO BUILT BRASILIA
TOKYO
CONTEMPORARY ART MUSEUM
JUL 18 2014 - OCT 12 2014
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The Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo staged Japan's first major retrospective on the work of Oscar Niemeyer, also known as the father of Brazilian modernist architecture. "Oscar Niemeyer - The Man Who Built Brasilia" presented a comprehensive overview of close to a century of architectural design by the legendarily Niemeyer, who was still designing upon his death at the age of 104. The exhibition was shown through and series of plans, models, photographs and video footage.
DESIGN MIAMI
MIAMI
BOOTH G23
DEC 03 2019 - DEC 08 2019
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On the occasion of Design Miami 2019, Side Gallery’s booth featured a selection of iconic historical designers such as, Ricardo Fasanello, Sergio Rodrigues and Joe Colombo as well as a combination of contemporary designers including, Muller Van Severen, Guillermo Santomá, and Sabine Marcelis. As well as some new names to gallery, such as Rodrigo Pinto and Sophie Rowley. The exhibition intended to navigate through time proposing a dialogue between architecture and design through the XX and the XXI century.
SALON ART + DESIGN
NEW YORK CITY
BOOTH B8
NOV 14 2019 - NOV 18 2019
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Exhibiting for the at SALON Art + Design in New York, December 2019, Side Gallery presented a collection of works from Brazilian designers Geraldo de Barros, Joaquim Tenreiro, Jorge Zalszupin and Sergio Rodrigues, the modern Brazilian design was carefully combined with a selection of contemporary works, including a lacquered blue buffet by Belgium design duo Muller Van Severen, produced exclusively for Side Gallery.
DESIGN MIAMI
MIAMI
BOOTH G15
DEC 04 2018 - DEC 09 2018
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At the 2018 edition of Design Miami, the Side Gallery booth was curated as navigation through time, expressing a dialogue between architecture and design through the XX and the XXI century. Featuring iconic historical designers such as Lina Bo Bardi, Osvaldo Borsani, Joaquim Tenreiro, Carlo Hauner & Martin Eisler, Gae Aulenti and Gino Sarfatti as well as contemporary designers Guillermo Santomà, Aneta Regel, Pedro Reyes and Sabine Marcelis.
OSCAR NIEMEYER:
THE CURVE OF TIME
NITERÓI
2012
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OSCAR NIEMEYER: THE
MAN WHO BUILT BRASILIA
TOKYO
2016
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OSCAR NIEMEYER:
INTERVIEW
BRAZIL
MAY 2009
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