SERGIO RODRIGUES (Rio de Janeiro, 1927–2014)

SERGIO RODRIGUES (Rio de Janeiro, 1927–2014).
Set of six dining chairs, 1960s.
Ebonized wood and olive-green bouclé upholstery.
Frames restored and upholstery renewed.
In good condition.
Measurements: 110 x 48 x 50 cm. Seat height: 48 cm.

Set of six chairs designed by Sergio Rodrigues during the 1960s, one of the pivotal periods of his career and the international consolidation of modern Brazilian design. They stand out for their slender, distinctly vertical backs—which widen slightly toward the base—and their trapezoidal seats. The ebonized wood frame creates an elegant hallmark with the recently renewed olive-green bouclé upholstery.

The design combines a visually light structure with a strong architectural presence. The high upholstered backrest is defined by narrow wooden uprights and culminates in a sculptural upper crossbar, while the stylized legs and lower crossbars reinforce the geometric purity of the piece. The result combines structural precision, comfort, and a formal expressiveness that is highly characteristic of modern Brazilian furniture.

Sergio Rodrigues was one of the key figures in forging a distinct identity for 20th-century Brazilian design. Trained as an architect, he founded Oca in Rio de Janeiro in 1955—a firm that played a decisive role in the development of a distinctly Brazilian modern furniture style, based on materials, forms, and ways of life that moved away from the mere imitation of European models. During the 1950s and 1960s, he gained international recognition with designs that blended modernity, traditional craftsmanship, and a new, informal conception of comfort. His famous “Mole” armchair won first prize at the 1961 Cantù International Furniture Competition, becoming one of the great icons of Brazilian design and a milestone in its international prominence.
His work was also closely linked to the renewal of Brazilian architecture during those years: his furniture was used in important interiors of the new capital, Brasília, and engaged in a dialogue with the architecture of figures such as Oscar Niemeyer and Lúcio Costa. This collection belongs precisely to the creative context in which Rodrigues helped establish Brazilian furniture within the international history of modern design.