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.
Greta Credenza Natural Woodwork Fine Lacquered Handmade Details
By Leonardo Di Caprio
Located in Roma, IT
A functional and practical cabinet, based on a discrete elegance, Greta combines a playful geometrical shapes, colors and woodwork. The outside is formed by 4 drawers on top and 4 d...
Metal
$12,928 / set
Set of 2 Casulo Cubes #2 by Mameluca
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 2 Casulo cubes #2 by Mameluca Material: electrostatic sluminum paint, recycled rubber blanket. Dimensions: D 45 x W 45 x H 90 cm Opening a cube and transforming it into a...
Aluminum
$36,700 / item
Trunk by Rafael Triboli
Located in São Paulo, BR
Rafael Triboli’s new collection synthesizes the foundational aspects of his practice, bringing together techniques and resources that have long inhabited his repertoire, but now achi...
Stainless Steel
Greta Storage Cabinet, Handcrafted Furniture, Italian Lacquer & Brass
By Leonardo Di Caprio
Located in Roma, IT
Greta is a refined storage cabinet that embodies understated elegance through a playful composition of geometric forms and carefully balanced colors. Clean lines and architectural pr...
Metal
$4,400Sale Price|32% Off
Jorge Zalszupin Brazilian Cabinet
By Jorge Zalszupin
Located in Washington, DC
Beautiful cabinet can be used as a side table as well. With a rich patchwork of Brazilian Rosewood by Brazilian master Jorge Zalszupin.
Wood
Rosewood Storage Chest by Celina Decoracoes, 1960s, Midcentury Brazilian Design
By Celina Decoracoes
Located in New York, NY
This Storage Chest made of Brazilian Rosewood with a leather detail was produced by Celina Decorações in the 1960s. Inside, there is a lot of space to keep your belongings. In this period, Brazilian furniture...
Rosewood, Leather
Mid-Century Modern Bar Cart by Carlo Hauner & Martin Eisler, 1950s
By Martin Eisler, Forma Brazil, Carlo Hauner and Martin Eisler
Located in New York, NY
A bar cart designed by Martin Eisler and Carlo Hauner in the 1950s and produced by Forma S.A. Móveis e Objetos de Arte. It features a chrome structure and loose trays of solid Rose...
Chrome
$4,606 / item
Da Pa Vermelha, Shelve by Cultivado Em Casa
Located in Geneve, CH
Da Pa Vermelha - shelve by Cultivado Em Casa Dimensions: 80 x 30 x 205 cm Materials: Digger, carbon steel and concrete. Shelf built from an articulated shovel, a hand tool widel...
Concrete, Steel
"Dionízio" Bar Cart in Black Carbon Steel Natural Wood Details and Leather
By Studio Marta Manente
Located in Centro, RS
The cart is a versatile piece in the décor. It transitions between the practical function in the house and the differentiated elegant aesthetic. Its structure could be produced personalized in carbon steel painted in the black color - matte finish. It has a tray for storing objects as bottles, which is made with curved multilaminated wood and recovered with eco leather in two options: brown croco or black color, as too the shelf below. It's has a fixed wheel, made in natural tauari wood. (Brazilian reforest wood), as the others beautiful details in wood. The cart is na elegant and sophisticated piece in the interior decoration, as it can be used as a bar, tea or coffee cart...
Metal
Magnificent 18th Century Brazil Colonial Armoire Cabinet
Located in Rio De Janeiro, BR
This exquisite 18th-century Brazilian armoire, circa 1780-1790, originating from a historic sugar cane plantation, carries with it the rich legacy of colonial Brazil. Crafted from so...
Wood
Brazil Colonial Revival Sideboard or Console Table - Circa 1940
Located in Rio De Janeiro, BR
This elegant sideboard or console table, crafted in the 1940s during the Brazilian Colonial Revival period, exudes the charm and craftsmanship characteristic of this era. The table features a robust, dark wood construction with a richly patinated surface that reflects its history and the quality of its material. The top is solid and spacious, perfect for showcasing decorative items or functioning as a functional piece in an entryway, dining room, or living space. The legs are curved in a traditional colonial style, echoing the influences of Spanish and Portuguese design elements that were prevalent in Brazil’s colonial furniture...
Wood
$1,861 / item
Teteia, Wall Shelve by Cultivado Em Casa
Located in Geneve, CH
Thethea - wall shelve by Cultivado Em Casa Dimensions: 50 x 38 x 140 cm Materials: MDF, carbon steel. Painting in Duco paint Teteia is a suspended bookcase...
Steel
A Fine Late 19th / Early 20th Century German-Brazilian Chest in Peroba do Campo
Located in Rio De Janeiro, BR
A Fine Late 19th / Early 20th Century German-Brazilian Chest in Peroba do Campo — Pomerode, Santa Catarina Crafted in the quiet valleys of Santa Catarina, in the German immigrant tow...
Wood
$30,196 / set
Set of 2 Symbiotic Shelves by Mameluca
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 2 Symbiotic shelves by Mameluca Material: Brazilian Wood: Cedro marinheiro, Jequitibá Rosa, Vinhático,Roxinho, Braúna aço inoxidável ; stainless steel. Dimensions: D40 x W10...
Stainless Steel
$11,700 / item
Shelve Murundu
By Cultivado em Casa
Located in Floresta, MG
Inspired by quite common natural elements in our region, Murundu speaks of affective landscapes, our rural nature and our profound connection with the countryside. At the same time...
Stainless Steel
$16,400 / item
Modular Bookcase by Andrew de Freitas
Located in São Paulo, BR
The objects on view in this collection extend through different forms of consciousness, intertwining layers of meaning and perception. Different modes of experiencing an object bleed...
Wood
$3,200 / item
'Da Pá Vermelha' Shelve
By Cultivado em Casa
Located in Floresta, MG
Created from a digger, a working tool widely used in Brazil. In this project it is fixed in concrete, the shelves and the base are made in steel with oxidized finish.
Steel
Magnificent 1933 Brazilian Empire-style Chest of Drawers
Located in Rio De Janeiro, BR
This 1933 Brazilian Empire-style chest of drawers is a stunning example of classic craftsmanship, blending the grandeur of Empire aesthetics with Brazilian hardwood's rich character....
Wood
Buffet by Geraldo de Barros, 1956
By Geraldo de Barros
Located in Barcelona, ES
Buffet Manufactured by Unilabor Brazil, 1956 Jacaranda wood Measurements 206 cm x 40 cm x 78h cm 81,1 in x 15,74 in x 30,7h in Literature Unilabor, by Mauro Claro. Brasil, 2004. Se...
Wood, Jacaranda
Low Sideboard Brazilian Tropical Hardwood Handcrafted by Ricardo Graham Ferreira
By Ricardo Graham Ferreira
Located in Nova Friburgo, RJ
Elegant and functional low sideboard or buffet is made in Brazilian solid "freijó" wood (aka. Brazilian walnut). The sideboard's drawers and chest have beautiful details of red Brazi...
Brass
$6,802 / item
Casulo Cube #2 by Mameluca
Located in Geneve, CH
Casulo Cube #2 by Mameluca Material: Electrostatic Aluminum paint, recycled rubber blanket. Dimensions: D 45 x W 45 x H 90 cm Also available in different dimensions. Opening a ...
Aluminum
$6,819 / item
Casulo Cube #3 by Mameluca
Located in Geneve, CH
Casulo cube #3 by Mameluca Material: Electrostatic Aluminum paint, recycled rubber blanket. Dimensions: D45 x W90 x H45 cm Also available in different dimensions. Opening a cub...
Aluminum
CANTO Minimal Brushed Anodized Aluminum Drawer Unit by Luiz Solano, Brazil 2023
By Luiz Solano
Located in Sao Paulo, SP
A rare typology in contemporary design, the CANTO Drawer Unit is constructed entirely in anodized aluminum, following the series’ formal language. The structure is welded; drawers ar...
Aluminum
Price Upon Request
First and Rare Version of Jorge Zalszupin "JZ" Tea Trolley
By Jorge Zalszupin
Located in London, England
Rarest version of the iconic JZ Trolley
Stainless Steel
Price Upon Request
Sideboard by Martin Eisler
By Carlo Hauner and Martin Eisler
Located in London, England
Rare sideboard by Martin Eisler
Hardwood
Price Upon Request
Rare Sideboard by Martin Eisler
By Carlo Hauner and Martin Eisler
Located in London, England
Rare and iconic sideboard by Martin Eisler c. 1955.
Cane, Hardwood
Price Upon Request
Credenza by Martin Eisler
By Martin Eisler
Located in New York, NY
Martin Eisler. Credenza. c. 1955. Caviuna and cane.
Cane, Wood
Price Upon Request
Credenza by Sérgio Rodrigues
By Sergio Rodrigues
Located in New York, NY
Credenza in jacaranda with leatherette doors. Designed by Sergio Rodrigues, Brazil, 1960s.
Leather, Wood
Price Upon Request
Bar-cart by Sergio Rodrigues
By Sergio Rodrigues
Located in London, England
Bar-cart by Sergio Rodrigues
Wood, Formica
Simple or sophisticated, equipped with console, cart or custom cabinetry, these stylish bar areas deserve a toast.
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