Lina Bo Bardi & Roberto Burle Marx

24 March 2015 - 30 April 2015

82 Franklin St NY 10013

R & Company is pleased to announce Lina Bo Bardi + Roberto Burle Marx, an exhibition of rare and important design works by Bo Bardi, shown alongside never before seen textiles, drawings and prints by Burle Marx. The exhibition will be on view from 24 March through 30 April 2015, with an opening reception on Tuesday, 24 March from 6-8 pm.

One of the few women designers of Brazil’s modernist era — and of the modernist era as a whole — Lina Bo Bardi (1914-1992) had a strong influence on the culture of the country with her ground breaking magazine, Habitat, and her design of furniture, architecture, and public spaces,including the São Paulo Museum of Art and the SESCPompéia Center in São Paulo. The dining set in the exhibition was created by Bo Bardi with designers Marcelo Ferraz and Marcelo Suzuki for the SESC-Pompéia and represents the ideal of a furnished public space featuring well-executed, inspiring, and functional designs.

Because she had so many projects, Bo Bardi’s output was limited, and virtually every Bo Bardi work has become an icon. The collection here shows her talent for creating forms that are beautifully minimal, with an exceptional combination of details that reveal her modern thinking as well as respect for old world elegance.

Roberto Burle Marx (1909-1994) is considered by many to be the godfather of 20th century Brazilian landscape design and is internationally renowned for his tropical gardens and mosaic walks such as the Copacabana beach promenade. Burle Marx was born in Brazil and studied painting in Germany and later at the National School of Fine Arts in Rio de Janeiro. Strongly influenced by abstract art and Brazilian folk art, Burle Marx developed a unique dialogue between his garden designs and his artistic works, with each echoing and inspiring the other.

The collection on view at R & Company includes many pieces never before seen by the public, including totemic wooden sculptures, drawings, textiles and prints. Both Bo Bardi and Burle Marxspent time in Europe and Brazil, and their work marries European sensibilities with the sensuality and rich natural materials available in Brazil. Seen together, the works offer a window into the immensely creative energy in Brazil’s design scene in the second half of the 20th century.