Marcelo Magalhaes
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Organic Modern Sideboards
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Organic Modern Chairs
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Side Tables
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Organic Modern Chairs
Straw, Wood
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21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Industrial Chandeliers and Pendants
Lava, Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Industrial Chandeliers and Pendants
Marble
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
Pine, Rush
Vintage 1970s Italian Modern Sofas
Leather, Foam
Vintage 1960s Brazilian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
Faux Leather, Imbuia
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Fabric, Wool, Cotton
2010s Mexican Other Chairs
Hardwood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Wool, Cotton
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Organic Modern Center Tables
Travertine
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Chairs
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Chinese Industrial Side Tables
Lava
Vintage 1970s Italian Sofas
Wood, Leather
Early 20th Century European Art Deco Chandeliers and Pendants
Alabaster, Brass
Vintage 1960s French Mid-Century Modern Wall Lights and Sconces
Lava, Enamel
Vintage 1970s Italian Rustic Chairs
Wood, Ash
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Sofas
Leather
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21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Armchairs
Reclaimed Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Side Tables
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Side Tables
On the Origins of Brazil
More often than not, vintage mid-century Brazilian furniture designs, with their gleaming wood, soft leathers and inviting shapes, share a sensuous, unique quality that distinguishes them from the more rectilinear output of American and Scandinavian makers of the same era.
Commencing in the 1940s and '50s, a group of architects and designers transformed the local cultural landscape in Brazil, merging the modernist vernacular popular in Europe and the United States with the South American country's traditional techniques and indigenous materials.
Key mid-century influencers on Brazilian furniture design include natives Oscar Niemeyer, Sergio Rodrigues and José Zanine Caldas as well as such European immigrants as Joaquim Tenreiro, Jean Gillon and Jorge Zalszupin. These creators frequently collaborated; for instance, Niemeyer, an internationally acclaimed architect, commissioned many of them to furnish his residential and institutional buildings.
The popularity of Brazilian modern furniture has made household names of these designers and other greats. Their particular brand of modernism is characterized by an émigré point of view (some were Lithuanian, German, Polish, Ukrainian, Portuguese, and Italian), a preference for highly figured indigenous Brazilian woods, a reverence for nature as an inspiration and an atelier or small-production mentality.
Hallmarks of Brazilian mid-century design include smooth, sculptural forms and the use of native woods like rosewood, jacaranda and pequi. The work of designers today exhibits many of the same qualities, though with a marked interest in exploring new materials (witness the Campana Brothers' stuffed-animal chairs) and an emphasis on looking inward rather than to other countries for inspiration.
Find a collection of vintage Brazilian furniture on 1stDibs that includes chairs, sofas, tables and more.