Oscar Niemeyer Passes Away At The Age Of 104
The last of the ‘heroes’ of the Modern movement has died Wednesday, at the age of 104 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the country he has both celebrated and become a celebrity for during more than 70 years of work. Oscar Niemeyer, one of the greatest architects of all times, didn’t have an easy time entering the highly Modernist circle. Even though Le Corbusier praised him for the innovative use of reinforced concrete, he did also receive pretty harsh criticism.
Nevertheless, Niemeyer worked tirelessly on new projects, each and every one of them highly iconic and undersigned by his intrinsic fascination with curves. He famously stated: “I am not attracted to straight angles or to the straight line, hard and inflexible, created by man. I am attracted to free-flowing sensual curves. The curves that I find in the mountains of my country, in the sinuousness of its rivers, in the waves of the ocean, and on the body of the beloved woman.” or “My work is not about ‘form follows function’, but ‘form follows beauty’ or, even better, ‘form follows feminine’.” This all can be clearly seen in one of the most ambitious and utopian projects of modern architecture, and Niemeyer’s masterpiece, Brazil’s concrete dream capital – Brasilia.
Brasilia was constructed in less than four years, in 41 months to be precise, following the determination of its president Juscelino Kubitschek. Brasilia, despite the fact that it is currently facing difficult social and infrastructural problems, has been listed as the World Heritage Site and remains one of the most incredible cities in the world. Its almost futuristic skyline, highly characterized by Niemeyer’s steady hand, collects some of the most important buildings in the history of architecture: the beautiful Alvorada Palace, the official residence of the Brazilian president, the House of the deputy, the National Congress of Brazil, the Cathedral of Brasília (a hyperboloid structure resembling a crown), diverse ministries and residential buildings.
Among other works created by this great master must be mentioned the Niterói Contemporary Art Museum, a futuristic building looking out across Guanabara Bay from Rio, Brazilian National Museum in Brasilia, the contribution to the United Nations Headquarters in New York or the Serpentine Pavilion in London. He was awarded Pritzker Prize in 1988, RIBA Royal Gold Medal in 1998 and the Lenin Peace Prize as life-long determined communist. Well, dear Oscar, you have done it all.
