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.
$4,630 / set
Pair of Monumental Marajoara Urns, Brazil, 1970s
Located in Rio De Janeiro, BR
Pair of Monumental Marajoara Urns, Brazil, 1970s Standing an impressive 95 cm high, this rare pair of monumental urns embodies the enduring spirit of Marajoara art, one of the most ...
Ceramic
$1,645 / item
Aretha Box by Fakasaka Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Aretha box by Fakasaka Design Dimensions: W 15 cm D 15 cm H 9.5 cm. Materials: black/brown bronze. Also available in polished bronze. FAKASAKA is a d...
Bronze
$5,813 / item
Round Vase in Dark Bronze by FAKASAKA Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Round Vase in Dark Bronze by FAKASAKA Design Dimensions: W 35.5 x D 15 x H 41 cm Materials: Dark bronze.
Bronze
$2,269 / item
Vase in Dark Bronze by Fakasaka Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Vase in dark bronze by FAKASAKA Design Dimensions: W 34 x D 8 x H 17.5 cm Materials: Dark bronze.
Bronze
$2,409 / item
Long Vase in Dark Bronze by Fakasaka Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Long vase in dark bronze by FAKASAKA Design Dimensions: W 19 x D 12 x H 41.5 cm Materials: Dark bronze.
Bronze
$1,976 / item
Cup Vase in Dark Bronze by Fakasaka Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Cup vase in dark bronze by FAKASAKA Design Dimensions: W 16 x D 16 x H 35.5 cm Materials: Dark bronze.
Bronze
$1,696 / item
Ava Box by Fakasaka Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Ava box by Fakasaka Design Dimensions: W 16 cm D 16 cm H 28.5 cm Materials: polished bronze. FAKASAKA is a design company focused on production of high-end furniture, lighting,...
Bronze
$1,696 / item
Ava Box by Fakasaka Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Ava box by Fakasaka Design Dimensions: W 16 cm D 16 cm H 28.5 cm Materials: black/brown bronze. FAKASAKA is a design company focused on production of high-end furniture, lighti...
Bronze
$1,645 / item
Aretha Box by Fakasaka Design
Located in Geneve, CH
Aretha box by Fakasaka Design Dimensions: W 15 cm D 15 cm H 9.5 cm. Materials: polished bronze. Also available in black/brown bronze. FAKASAKA is a d...
Bronze
Antique American Enameled Glass Ladies Footed Dresser Jar or Jewelry Box
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
This antique pressed glass jewelry casket or jar is unsigned but presumed to have been made in the United States in circa 1880 in the period Vict...
Brass
Pair Monumental Neoclassical Carved White Marble Urns
Located in New York, NY
Pair of finest quality monumental 19 century Italian neoclassical carved white marble urns each measuring 39 1/2 inches tall. Signed Firenze (for Fl...
Marble
Intricate Carved French Fruit Wood Trunk, Perfume Box, circa 1880
Located in Bath, GB
A fabulous example of a French fruitwood box carved beautifully carved into the form of a trunk. Look closely at the amazing detail, the side handles, the leather stitching, the l...
Fruitwood
Japanese Bronze Vase with Butterfly Design
Located in Hudson, NY
Taisho period bronze with butterfly design and handles with wheat design. Signature on base reads: Akijo.
Bronze
Small I Cinesi Vase in Dark Red by Carlo Moretti
By Carlo Moretti
Located in IT
By putting three layers of glass on one another in three distinct moments colored opaque glass, clear crystal and colored crystal one achieves the amazing effect of a material that p...
Crystal
Pair Of Moroccan Urns
Located in Houston, TX
Pair Of Moroccan Urns. Offered is a large matching pair of vintage Moroccan incised terracotta urns. These Moorish urns have a subtle color tone that will work in a variety of interi...
Terracotta
$2,850 / set
H 28 in Dm 10 in
Pair of Monumental John-Richard Verdigris Patinated Art Deco Style Lidded Urns
By John-Richard 1
Located in Morristown, NJ
Striking pair of monumental decorative lidded urns by celebrated American luxury furnishings company John-Richard, executed in a richly textured verdigris-style patinated metal with ...
Metal
$991 / set
H 13.78 in Dm 7.49 in
Set/2 Pineapple Ceramic Pots, White, Handmade in Portugal by Lusitanus Home
By Lusitanus Home, Greenapple
Located in Lisboa, PT
Pineapple Decorative Pots, Lusitanus Home Collection, Handcrafted in Portugal - Europe by Lusitanus Home. This beautiful set includes two wa...
Gold
$994 / set
H 13.78 in Dm 7.49 in
Set/2 Pineapple Ceramic Pots, Black, Handmade in Portugal by Lusitanus Home
By Lusitanus Home, Greenapple
Located in Lisboa, PT
Pineapple Decorative Pots, Lusitanus Home Collection, Handcrafted in Portugal - Europe by Lusitanus Home. This beautiful set includes two waterproof ceramic pots with lid, perfect t...
Gold
$1,750
H 9.85 in Dm 7.49 in
Sic Rimini Blu Glazed Ceramic Large Lidded Vessel / Box Bitossi Aldo Londi Style
By Bitossi, Aldo Londi, SIC Ceramiche Artistiche
Located in Barcelona, ES
Large Mid-Century Modern blue glazed ceramic (Rimini Blu) round lidded box , Manufactured by S.I.C Ceramiche Italy, 1950-1960s. It has reminiscences in those Rimini blue designs from Aldo Londi and Bitossi...
Ceramic, Pottery, Terracotta
Art Deco Half Doll Porcelain Vanity Powder - Trinket Box, 1930's
Located in Devon, England
For your consideration is this very attractive and totally original 1930's Art Deco ladies powder/ trinket box. Made from porcelain with a vibrantly colored painted finish. Highly fu...
Porcelain
$586
H 3.94 in W 7.49 in D 7.49 in
Brazilian Amazonian Marajoara Style Art Pottery Vessel Brazil R Cardoso
Located in London, GB
Brazilian Amazonian Marajoara Style Art Pottery Vessel Brazil R Cardoso An original signed work by R. Cardoso, produced in the renowned ceramic center of Icoaraci, Pará. This hand-c...
Pottery
Pair of Rock Crystal Decorative Small Urns
Located in Dallas, TX
Pair of rock crystal decorative small urns, from Brazil hand carved.
Rock Crystal
Brazilian Rock Crystal Vase
Located in Dallas, TX
Great quality Brazilian rock crystal vase.
Rock Crystal
Pair of Brazilian Rock Crystal Urns
Located in Dallas, TX
Splendid pair of Brazilian rock crystal urns with gilt finials.
Rock Crystal
Large Pair of Mid-Century Modern Rock Crystal Quartz Urn Form Cassolettes
Located in Roslyn, NY
A wonderful large pair of Mid-Century Modern rock crystal / quartz urn form Cassolettes, Since these are natural quartz the color tone of them do vary. The top lid is removable and...
Rock Crystal
19th Century Painted Clay Country Pot from Brazil
Located in Wainscott, NY
19th century painted clay country pot from Brazil Beautiful example of pottery from the countryside Worn rim adds to the beauty of this piece as does th...
Clay
Pair of Modern Rock Crystal Urns
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pair of modern rock crystal pedestal urns. The rock crystal is extremely high quality. The base measurement is 5 inches. The price below is for a pair but there are others available.
Rock Crystal