Sergio Rodrigues Six Dining Chairs in Jacaranda and Tan Cowhide, 1960s

Sergio Rodrigues (1927–2014)

A striking set of six modernist dining chairs by Carioca design pioneer and frequent Oscar Niemeyer collaborator Sérgio Rodrigues, in Brazilian rosewood upholstered in unshaved caramel-colored cowhide. The chairs synthesize a unique combination of Shaker, De Stijl, and Japanese influences, reinterpreting them through a distinctly Brazilian lens that prioritizes native woods and refuses to sacrifice well-being at the altar of design, instead using comfort as a guidepost to evolve a new style. An extra-high, triangular curved back, which comfortably supports the body, culminates in a sculptural head-rest reminiscent of Edo-period takamakura. It hinges on a geometric frame that narrows between the front and back legs to form a trapezoid, foregrounding the negative space between the diagonal stretchers, and culminating in hyper-tapered legs. These elegant chairs are unique among Rodrigues’ work for their lightness and vertically elongated proportions.

Dubbed the father of Brazilian furniture, Rodrigues, alongside Joaquim Tenreiro and José Zanine Caldas, spearheaded the country’s ascent as a force for innovative, avant-guard modernism that highlighted indigenous materials and infused the movement’s sometimes impersonal utilitarianism with warmth and dynamism.