Movement
Brazilian Modernism
Explore in the Atlas →A distinctive regional modernism that crystallised around the Ministry of Education and Health building in Rio (1936–43) and the planning of Brasília, transforming European functionalism into a sensuous, plastic idiom of sweeping reinforced-concrete curves, pilotis, brise-soleils and spatial fluidity. Its leading figures include Lúcio Costa, Oscar Niemeyer and the socially engaged Lina Bo Bardi.
Power Collectivity Fantasy
Details
- Origin
- Brazil
Classifications
- Holder
- Individual
- Source of authority
- ReasonLived experience
- Subject
- Human centred
- Political position
- Subaltern resistant
- Degree of codification
- Pattern based
- Mode of transmission
- Text drawing
- Knowledge type
- Propositional
- Epistemic cluster
- Western philosophical
Referenced by
- Cathedral of Brasília exemplifies
- SESC Pompéia exemplifies
- Casa de Vidro (Glass House) exemplifies
- Lina Bo Bardi associated with
Sources
- Lauro Cavalcanti. When Brazil Was Modern: Guide to Architecture 1928–1960. Princeton Architectural Press, 2003.
- Encyclopædia Britannica. Lina Bo Bardi. Britannica, 2024.
- Kenneth Frampton. Modern Architecture: A Critical History. Thames & Hudson, 1980.
Cite this entry
First published May 2026Last revised Jul 2026
CLAD. "Brazilian Modernism." Atlas of Architectural Thought. CLAD, 2026. https://www.cl-ad.com.au/research/atlas/movement/brazilian-modernism/. Accessed July 17, 2026.