Oscar Ribeiro de Almeida Niemeyer Soares Filho (December 15, 1907 – December 5, 2012), known as Oscar Niemeyer (Brazilian Portuguese: [ɔʃˈkaʁ ˈniemajeʁ]), was a Brazilian architect who is considered to be one of the key figures in the development of modern architecture. Niemeyer was best known for his design of civic buildings for Brasília, a planned city that became Brazil's capital in 1960, as well as his collaboration with other architects on the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. His exploration of the aesthetic possibilities of reinforced concrete was highly influential in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.Both lauded and criticized for being a "sculptor of monuments", Niemeyer was hailed as a great artist and one of the greatest architects of his generation by his supporters. He said his architecture was strongly influenced by Le Corbusier, but in an interview, assured that this "didn't prevent [his] architecture from going in a different direction". Niemeyer was most famous for his use of abstract forms and curves and wrote in his memoirs:Born in Rio de Janeiro, Niemeyer was schooled at the city's Escola Nacional de Belas Artes (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro), and after graduating worked at his father's typography house, and as a draftsman for local architectural firms. In the 1930s, he interned with Lúcio Costa, with the pair collaborating on the design for the Palácio Gustavo Capanema in Rio de Janeiro. Niemeyer's first major project was a series of buildings for Pampulha, a planned suburb north of Belo Horizonte. His work, especially on the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi, received critical acclaim and drew international attention. Throughout the 1940s and 1950s, Niemeyer became one of Brazil's most prolific architects, working both domestically and overseas. This included the design of the Edifício Copan (a large residential building in São Paulo) and a collaboration with Le Corbusier (and others) on the United Nations Headquarters, which yielded invitations to teach at Yale University and the Harvard Graduate School of Design.In 1956, Niemeyer was invited by Brazil's new president, Juscelino Kubitschek, to design the civic buildings for Brazil's new capital, which was to be built in the centre of the country, far from any existing cities. His designs for the National Congress of Brazil, the Cathedral of Brasília, the Cultural Complex of the Republic, the Palácio da Alvorada, the Palácio do Planalto, and the Supreme Federal Court, all completed by 1960, were experimental and linked by common design elements. This work led to his appointment as inaugural head of architecture at the University of Brasília, as well as honorary membership of the American Institute of Architects. Due to his largely leftist ideology, and involvement with the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB), Niemeyer left the country after the 1964 military coup and opened an office in Paris. He returned to Brazil in 1985, and was awarded
Paulo Niemeyer, Judite Niemeyer, Lília Niemeyer, Leonor Niemeyer, Carlos Augusto Niemeyer
Awards
Pritzker Architecture Prize, Royal Gold Medal, Princess of Asturias Award for the Arts, Lenin Peace Prize, Order of Friendship, Order of St. Gregory the Great, Military Order of Saint James of the Sword
Star Sign
Sagittarius
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Quote
1
In architecture, the most important thing is astonishment.
2
Right angles don't attract me. Nor straight, hard and inflexible lines created by man. What attracts me are free and sensual curves. The curves we find in the mountains, in the waves of the sea, in the body of the woman we love.
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Fact
1
Brother of Paulo (1914-2004), Lília, Carlos Augusto, Leonor and Judite.
2
Being a communist, he emigrated to Paris due to a military coup of Brazil's army and lived there from 1966 to 1985.
3
His most prestigious works include National Stadium in Rio de Janeiro (1941), the main building of the United Nations Headquarters in New York (1947), the Niterói Contemporary Art Museum (1996).
4
His family is of German descent.
5
The Oscar Niemeyer Museum complex in Curitiba, locally known as "Niemeyer's Eye", was inaugurated in 2002.
6
His wife, Vera Lúcia, is 38 years his junior.
7
He has thirteen great-grandchildren.
8
Has five grandchildren: the photographer Carlos Eduardo "Kadu" Niemeyer, Ana Lúcia and Ana Elisa (from Anna Maria's marriage to Walter da Silva Attademo), Carlos Oscar Niemeyer and Ana Cláudia (from Anna Maria's relationship with Carlos Magalhães Silveira.
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Father of Anna Maria Niemeyer, with first wife, Annita.
10
Designed a large number of residential, commercial and government buildings in the new planned capital of Brazil, Brasilia (1960).
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Brazilian architect, who is considered one of the most important and influential modern architects.
Art Department
Title
Year
Status
Character
Tricheurs
1984
production designer: Casino Park Hotel de Madeira
Production Designer
Title
Year
Status
Character
Pedro Mico
1985
Thanks
Title
Year
Status
Character
Chico Buarque - Na Carreira
2012
TV Movie special thanks
Self
Title
Year
Status
Character
Urbanized
2011
Documentary
Himself - Architect, Oscar Niemeyer Architects
Cidades Inventadas
2010
TV Movie documentary
Himself
Oscar Niemeyer - A Vida É Um Sopro
2010
Documentary
Himself
Oscar Niemeyer 101
2009
Video documentary short
Himself
Brizola - Tempos de Luta
2007
Documentary
Himself
Viva
2003
TV Series
Himself
Barra 68 - Sem Perder a Ternura
2001
Documentary
Himself
Oscar Niemeyer, un architecte engagé dans le siècle