The Italian-born Brazilian architect Lina Bo Bardi came to imbue the pure and lofty if somewhat bloodless tenets of modern design with the warm and earthy character of her adopted homeland.
Bardi was born in Rome and graduated in 1939 from the Università degli studi di Roma “La Sapienza” with a degree in architecture. She moved to Milan, worked with Gio Ponti, among other modernist luminaries, and began a career in design journalism. Bardi served as an editor for Ponti’s groundbreaking magazine, Domus, and in 1945 traveled for the publication throughout Italy with a photographer, documenting the physical destruction wrought by World War II.
Bardi moved to Brazil in 1947 with her husband, art dealer and critic Pietro Maria Bardi. There Pietro helped establish the São Paulo Museum of Art (MASP) while his wife resumed her work in journalism and soon launched her architectural practice. Her first building project was designing a house for herself and her husband on a hillside in what were then the outskirts of São Paulo.
Built in 1951 and known as Casa de Vidro (or Glass House), it is a glass-walled box set on slim steel columns, inspired equally by the Bauhaus and Le Corbusier. Its interiors, with their mid-century furnishings, folk-art pieces and ethnographic curios, are reminiscent of those of Charles and Ray Eames’ house in California. (Bardi also created the interiors of the original MASP and was a natural choice to design the second museum when the institution had outgrown its first home.)
As a furniture designer, Bardi demonstrated flair from the start. The Bowl chair, designed in 1951 but not manufactured until Italian furniture maker Arper recently issued it, is a marvel of versatility. The seat can be swiveled to satisfy any attitude of repose or dismounted to serve as a rocking baby crib. That same year, she made the throne-like Bola de Latão chair, which in place of arms has stanchions topped by brass balls. Its slung leather seat and backrest have unfinished edges secured with lacing, giving the piece an artisanal, perhaps even sexual, air.
In the late 1950s and early ’60s, Bardi designed cushioned chairs with wooden frames whose softened angularity recalls the work of Pierre Jeanneret and Marcel Breuer’s 1938 furniture designs for Bryn Mawr College. But Bardi’s furniture construction and aesthetic sensibilities evolved in tandem with her populist principles. Her embrace of Brazil’s social mosaic was most fully expressed in her last major project, and her masterpiece: a combined cultural and recreational center in São Paulo known as the SESC Pompéia.
Built in stages between 1977 and ’82, the complex has as its core a renovated drum factory. In it, Bardi — to use architectural parlance — created a nonhierarchical environment, with equal prominence and care given to areas as disparate as theaters, sports facilities and places for old folks to sit and gossip or play chess.
Bardi’s last chairs, designed for the center, are built of solid wood, sturdy and durable with simple and graceful forms. They seem to suggest that the most interesting thing about a piece of furniture should be the person using it.
Find vintage Lina Bo Bardi furniture on 1stDibs.
Lina Bo Bardi; Marcelo Ferraz; Marcelo Suzuki. "Girafa" Chair. Edition 2022
By Baraúna, Lina Bo Bardi
Located in PARIS, FR
Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz & Marcelo Suzuki "Girafa" Chair – Design 1986, Edition 2022 Signed “Baraúna” (branded) Originally designed in 1986 by Lina Bo Bardi in collaboration wit...
Hardwood
Lina Bo Bardi deck chair Studio d´Arte Palma Brazil 1958
By Studio d´Arte Palma, Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Roosendaal, Noord Brabant
This rare and exceptional deck chair, designed by Lina Bo Bardi and Giancarlo Palanti, is a striking example of mid-century Brazilian design. Manufactured by Studio d’Arte Palma in B...
Steel
Mid-Century Modern Zig-Zag Armchair by Lina Bo Bardi and Giancarlo Palanti
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in New York, NY
The Zig-Zag armchair, designed in 1948 by Lina Bo Bardi in collaboration with Giancarlo Palanti. Crafted with a solid cabreúva wood structure and a soleta leather seat, the piece exe...
Leather, Wood
Lina Bo Bardi. Stool SESC Pompéia, Drawing 1982/ Edition 2023
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in PARIS, FR
Lina Bo Bardi Stool SESC Pompéia, Designed 1982 / Edition 2023 Laminated pine Dimensions: 52 x 40 x 68 cm (20.47 x 15.75 x 26.77 in) This stool is one of the most sought-after iconi...
Laminate, Pine
Lina Bo Bardi; Marcelo Ferraz; Marcelo Suzuki. Frei Egidio Chair. Edition 2022
By Baraúna, Lina Bo Bardi
Located in PARIS, FR
The Frei Egídio chair was developed by Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz and Marcelo Suzuki, to equip Mattos' Gregório theater in Salvador. It had to be light and easily transportable an...
Hardwood, Pine
Frei Egídio Chair by Lina Bo Bardi , 2022, Marcenaria Baraúna
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Design：Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, Marcelo Suzuki Material：Solid Pine This chair was designed by Lina Bo Baldi, Marcelo Ferras, and Marcelo Suzuki for the Teatro Gregório de Mattos in Salvador...
Wood, Pine
SESC Pompeia Chair by Lina Bo Bardi , 2022, Marcenaria Baraúna
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Design：Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, André Vainer Material：Laminated Pine Designed by Lina Bo Bardi in 1986, this chair was designed for the library and dining room in the SESC Pomp...
Wood, Pine
Little Box for SESC Pompeia by Lina Bo Bardi , 2022, Marcenaria Baraúna
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Design：Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, André Vainer Material：Solid Pine, Melamine laminate, with casters Designed by Lina Bo Baldi in 1986, this children's desk was created for insta...
Wood
Girafa Table by Lina Bo Bardi , 2022, Marcenaria Baraúna
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Design：Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, Marcelo Suzuki Material：Tauari In 1986, Marcelo Ferraz and Marcelo Suzuki Lina Bo Bardi worked on a series of projects in Salvador, including t...
Wood
Lina Bo Bardi Armchair / Authentic Mid-Century Modern
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Zürich, CH
Sculptural qualities define this object. A vivid dynamic between the different volumes and surfaces, showing different qualities from different angles. Its expressive form offers a c...
Iron
Single armchair model “Tridente” or “P9”
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Barcelona, ES
Single armchair model “Tridente” or “P9” Manufactured by Studio d’Arte Palma (Lina Bo Bardi & Giancarlo Palanti) Brazil, 1948 wood, velvet mohair upholstery Measurements 64cmx84cmx8...
Velvet, Wood
Pair of chairs by Lina bo bardi
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Rare paire de chaises par Lina Bo Bardi.
Velvet, Wood
Scarce bola chair by Lina Bo bardi, early edition
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Lina BO BARDI (1914-1992)Chaise dite Bola, circa 1970, à assise et dossier en cuir cognac tendu et disposés sur une structure tubulaire en métal laqué noir formant un piètement quadr...
Metal, Brass
Iconic Sesc Pompeia Stool, by Lina Bo Bardi, 1979-1980, Midcentury Brazilian
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in New York, NY
This iconic stool was designed by Lina Bo Bardi (1914-1992) and made especially for Sesc Pompeia, a cultural center in São Paulo, Brazil. It consists of structures that resemble crat...
Pine
Scarce Lina Bo Bardi Armchair
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Rare Fauteuil, circa 1985, à assise et dossier en daim gris tendu et disposés sur une structure en imbuia formant les accoudoirs et reposant sur trois pieds de type rondins joints pa...
Suede, Imbuia
Deck chair by Lina Bo Bardi designed for casa valéria
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Scarce easy chair by Lina Bo Bardi. Nice patina.
Iron
Mid-Century Modern "Masp 7th Abril" Chair, by Lina Bo Bardi, 1947
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in New York, NY
A chair designed by the Italian-born Brazilian architect Lina Bo Bardi for the MASP auditorium when it was still located on 7th April Street. The writer a...
Leather, Rosewood
Girafa Chair by Lina Bo Bardi , 2024, Marcenaria Baraúna
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Design：Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, Marcelo Suzuki Material：Tauari Design for the restaurant at the "House of Benin" in Salvador, Brazil. The "House of Benin" is an institution de...
Wood
Girafa Stool by Lina Bo Bardi , 2022, Marcenaria Baraúna
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Design：Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, Marcelo Suzuki Material：Tauari In 1986, Marcelo Ferraz and Marcelo Suzuki Lina Bo Bardi worked on a series of projects in Salvador, including t...
Wood
SESC Stools by Lina Bo Bardi for SESC Pompeia, Brazil, 1970s
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Antwerp, BE
These SESC stools, designed by Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, and Marcelo Suzuki for the SESC Pompeia center in São Paulo, showcase the minimalist yet thoug...
Pine
A pair of lounge chairs attributed to Lina Bo Bardi
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Long Island City, NY
A pair of lounge chairs attributed to Lina Bo Bardi, featuring doweled seats and backrests, completed with newly reupholstered in soft cashmere wool.
Wood
Girafa Low Table by Lina Bo Bardi , 2022, Marcenaria Baraúna
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Design：Lina Bo Bardi, Marcelo Ferraz, Marcelo Suzuki Material：Tauari This is a low table model of a table designed in 1986 for the Salvador "House of Benin" restaurant in Brazil. Th...
Wood
Moderno: Design for Living in Brazil, Mexico, and Venezuela, 1940-1978
By Lina Bo Bardi, Clara Porset
Located in New York, NY
Catalog of a traveling exhibition that opened at the America’s Society in New York in 2015. Published by America Society and Santillana. 4to, hardcover, 280 pages, with both full col...
Paper
Mid-Century Modern Glass House Stools by Lina Bo Bardi, 1951
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in New York, NY
Designed for the Glass House, Bo Bardi’s first built project, this three-legged stool features an iron-tubing frame with a circular wooden seat in black. Versatile as a stool or side...
Iron
Single armchair Designed by Lina Bo Bardi, Brazil, 1959
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Barcelona, ES
Single armchair Designed by Lina Bo Bardi Manufactured by Pau Bra Brazil, 1959 Measurements 56 cm x 72 cm x 79h cm 22 in x 28,5 in x 31h in Provenance Private collection, Sao Paulo
Wood
Giraffe Chair by Lina Bo Bardi, Brazil, circa 1980
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Antwerp, BE
Designed by Lina Bo Bardi, the Giraffe chair is a distinctive example of Brazilian modernist design, defined by its playful yet architectural form. The composition is reduced to esse...
Wood
Lina Bo Bardi Side table / Stool
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in Washington, DC
Stool / Side Table by Lina Bo Bardi featuring electric blue metal legs and black wooden tabletop. In original vintage condition
Metal
SESC Stools by Lina Bo Bardi
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in London, England
Iconic SESC Stool designed by Lina Bo Bardi and Marcelo Suzuki for SESC Pompeia in 1982 completely unrestored.
Hardwood
Rare side table by Lina Bo Bardi and Giancarlo Palanti
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in London, England
Extremely rare pair of side tables by Lina Bo Bardi and Giancarlo Palanti for Studio de Arte Palma. Still preserve manufacturer's label below.
Plywood
SESC Stools by Lina Bo Bardi
By Lina Bo Bardi
Located in London, England
Iconic SESC Stool designed by Lina Bo Bardi and Marcelo Suzuki for SESC Pompeia in 1982.
Hardwood