Brazilian modernism by legendary midcentury practitioners such as Lina Bo Bardi, Etel Carmona, Sergio Rodrigues, and Joaquim Tenreiro stole the spotlight when it began appearing on the collectible design stage after the country’s dictatorship crumbled in 1985. A handful of fine galleries managed to bring classic pieces to the international market – the government had restrictions on their export – making this parallel strain of modernism an instant sensation.
Yet the furniture industry in Brazil is booming, and not just at the collectible level. There is something for every price point, including private-label designs for some of America’s most well-known brands. The Brazilian Association of Furniture Industries (ABIMÓVEL) represents more than 18,000 companies. The country exports almost $1 billion in furniture.
Styles cover a vast array of aesthetics, though some of the traits that characterized the work of midcentury masters persist today, such as the use of local and, often, responsibly sourced fibers. Plastic and steel were not readily available when Brazil closed its borders under the dictatorship, so wood became and continues to be the primary material. There is also a long tradition of caning in the country, so it is common to see that deployed functionally and decoratively.
Tiago Curioni
The pluralism of Brazilian design – the ability to draw on many sources and not be directed solely by Brazil’s modernist legacy – is perfectly embodied by Tiago Curioni, a Brazilian designer who splits his time between São Paulo and Porto, Portugal. “Designers should not confine themselves to a single movement, aspect or specific characteristic in their work,” he believes. “Such limitations can stifle creativity and lead to a sense of stagnation. Instead, the design process should remain dynamic and responsive to the ever-changing environment that envelops the designer.”
His peripatetic life, he believes “allows me to create products that draw from diverse cultural influences. I may develop items from an Asian perspective utilizing Brazilian fibers or delve into Scandinavian design while incorporating Portuguese mechanisms and fittings.”
Studio Marta Manente Design
Designer Marta Manente’s sense of form and fashion styling would certainly be at home in Milan. Her Pietra sofa and chair are based, for instance, on rock shapes. (Coincidentally, less than two years ago, Moroso also released Pebble Rubble, a modular sofa system based on similar shapes.) Manente’s Wind armchair feels like haute couture, based as it seems on the extravagantly fringed dresses of the roaring twenties. The idea, for the designer, was a chair that could visibly be affected by the movement of the breeze.
Yet there are luxuriously whimsical designs, too, that feel quintessentially Brazilian. Her Revoar (Fly) swings, for instance. Leather is braided, woven and knotted into suspension cords and fringed seats. Aside from their fun factor, they exude a sense of indigenous craft. The swings are made for both indoor and outdoor use.
Sergio and Larissa Batista | Know How Studio
As a youth, Sergio Batista took a job at a furniture store that had a factory nearby. It was his entry into furniture design that eventually led to the establishment of Know How Studio, through which the self-taught Sergio today creates pieces for Uultis, Sier Móveis, Artesano, Volttoni and Sol Studio, aside from private made-to-order work.
His young daughter Larissa took to the trade as a child and eventually earned her degree in architecture and design. “Having a designer for a dad made a huge impact on my life,” states Larissa. “Going home and having someone to share ideas to the level that we always did was something quite uniquely formative for my career.”
For his part, adds Sergio, “Larissa’s involvement in the studio from the very beginning brought a freshness that we continue to take advantage of. She has a completely different way of thinking, and that complements the vibe at the studio quite well.” Larissa brought other brands under the Know How client umbrella, such as Montri (which manufactures her luxurious pool tables) and Rhever, “an up-and-coming furniture brand in Brazil,” she describes. Like Sergio, Larissa also produces her own custom designs. Father and daughter have a fluid working relationship, sometimes designing individually, other times in tandem.
Prosa
“Our main source of inspiration is technique,” claims Júlia Rovigo, principal with Gabriel Pesca of Prosa. “Most of our techniques come from naval carpentry.” Their Yara chair, for instance, “was created from a pile of scraps of failed attempts at steam-bending.” The chair looks like a cross between the secessionists (the ball feet and rounded shapes recall Josef Hoffmann) and midcentury modernists Charles and Ray Eames.
They’re also fond of biomorphic shapes (Mel and Jataí dining tables), while at times also manifesting a kind of hybrid of Asian and American Studio Craft Movement aesthetics (Gui desk).
Rovigo and Pesca, however, draw more inspiration from artists like the Spanish sculptor Eduardo Chillida than modernist forebears, something that manifests in the sculptural quality of much of their furniture. The main source, observes Rovigo, “comes from our cities, the nature that surrounds us, our culture and our lifestyle.”
Read the full profiles in the winter 2023 issue of aspire design and home magazine.
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