Oscar Niemeyer Casadecanoas

ARC 203a Assignment Oscar Niemeyers House in Canoas, Brazil, 1953
Student number 060194356 1

Oscar Niemeyers House in Canoas Brazil, 1953

Oscar Niemeyer Annita Niemeyer - 1950
Komarov S., (1975) Niemeyer O., (2000)
Oscar Niemeyer Architecture The Curves Time the memoirs
And Society of Oscar Niemeyer

Oscar Niemeyer and his daughter Niemeyers house at Canoas
Anna Maria 1930s http://www.architectenwerk.nl
Niemeyer O., (2000) architectenpraktijk02/images /
The Curves Time the memoirs /niemeyer1.jpg
of Oscar Niemeyer


Oscar Ribeiro de Almeida de Niemeyer Soares is a Brazilian architect, who was born in
Rio de Janeiro on the 15th December 1907. His personal life and his career were deeply
affected by the constant political shifts that Brazil was experiencing in the twentieth century.
It can be said that the two factors, which defined Niemeyers life were architecture and
politics.
Niemeyer, who came from a bourgeois family, spent his childhood and his bohemian youth
relatively comfortably and care-free during the days of the Old Republic. At this time Brazil
was a country with constitutional democracy, dominated by minority of rich people who
owned their wealth to coffee production and land ownership. During this time the young men
was not concerned with either architecture or politics, but this was soon to change.
In 1930 Oscar Niemeyer married his first wife Annita and he began to realize the
responsibility (Niemeyer, 2000, p. 18) he had assumed (Niemeyer, 2000, p. 18) so he went
to work at his fathers typography house and enrolled in the National School of Fine Arts with
the intention of becoming a good architect (Niemeyer, 2000, p. 24). This choice marked an
important shift in his life that occurred at the same time as a major shift in the countrys
politics.
The Great Depression had cracked the stability of the existing social order and the common
trend for industrialization created suitable conditions for the emerging of new classes of
workers and members of the military, who demanded a change in Brazils politics. The days
of the Old Republic were over and Brazil was quickly moving into a new economic and
political phase, during which the power of the land and coffee oligarchs rapidly decreased.
This led to a revolution in 1930, which was defined by the rise of Getlio Dorneles Vargas
as a political leader. Vargas spent over twenty years in politics and he often shifted his
position and his ideologies. He was a senator, a president and a dictator and his politics
circled around nationalism, populism, fascism and democracy, creating a very unstable
political environment, in which the only constants were the aims for industrialization and a
large scale urban planning.
It was during the period of Vargass government that Niemeyer made his second major life
choice. Despite his bourgeois upbringing, he decided to join the PCB (the communist party of
Brazil). At the time Vargas had declared the party illegal and the young architect faced
numerous threats, while he was carrying out his duties to the party selling the partys
newspaper, distributing posters and banners and organizing meetings. However, at this point
he did not have any troubles and his career advanced smoothly. It was only later that he faced
the consequences of his political choices that included professional problems and twenty one
years of voluntary exile in France.
As mentioned above, politics was not the only important part of Niemeyers life. His
architectural career was just as important and it developed at the time when Modernism was
gaining popularity throughout the world and especially in Brazil. This gave Niemeyer endless
opportunities to experiment with the new style and gain a reputation of being arguably the
greatest living Modernist architect (Andreas P., B., et al ,2003, p.21).
It all started, while Niemeyer was working in the office of Lucio Costa and Carlos Leao. It
was there that Niemeyer first met Le Corbusier. They all worked on the design for the
Ministry of Education and Health building, which was a turning point in the history of
Modernism. In the book by Andreas et al (2003) it is stated that this was the first time
Modernist architecture was used for a government building. So far it had only been applied to
office and administration buildings in Germany as well as to domestic buildings for the
intellectual elite in France. This book also suggests that the work on the Ministry of Education
and Health building showed that Modernism could be transferred to different climate
conditions and used for a wide range of buildings such as warehouses, council housing,



factories and railway stations. This idea later on led Niemeyer to apply the new style to his
own house at Canoas.
Meeting Le Corbusier gave Niemeyer an insight to the architecture of one of the masters
of Modernism. The exchange of ideas between them continued, when they worked together
on the United Nations Headquarters in New York. By their second meeting Niemeyer had
gained enough confidence to open his own office and walk his own way in the profession.
Even though Niemeyer felt deep appreciation for Le Corbusiers work, the young architect
had discovered that he was not attracted to the straight angles or to the straight line
(Niemeyer, 2000, p.3), which he considered to be hard and inflexible (Niemeyer, 2000,
p.3). Niemeyer needed to experiment and find out what exactly what his style was.
The chance to do this was given to Niemeyer by Gustavo Capanema, who was then the
Minister of Education and Health. Capanema introduced Niemeyer to Juscelino Kubitschek,
who entrusted the young architect with two of his most important works the Pampulha
project and Brasilia. It was the Pampulha project in Belo Horizonte, which became the
generator of Niemeyers style and is considered as the beginning of his architectural career.
He used it as a chance to experiment and challenge the monotony of contemporary
architecture, the wave of misinterpreted functualism that hindered it, and the dogmas of form
and function that had emerged (Niemeyer, 2000, p. 62) and to oppose his own view of the
plastic freedom of reinforced concrete. He was keen on the curve-the liberated sensual
curve (Niemeyer, 2000, p. 62) that was made possible by new technologies. These ideas
became permanent features of his style and were fully integrated in the architecture of the
Canoas house. It can be said that Niemeyer had found his path in architecture, which
according to Le Corbusier was baroque,butvery well done ( Niemeyer, 2000, p.63).
By 1953, when Niemeyer designed his house, apart from the Pampulha complex he had
worked on various projects including the Brazillian Pavillion at the New York Worlds fair
and had won several competitions. This helped him to gain reputation as an architect and
achieve the financial security he needed to build his own house. He had also determined his
ideologies in terms of society, politics and architecture and had formed a unique style, which
he expressed to the full in the architecture of the house at Canoas, which in itself was a
remarkable achievement of Modernist architecture.
Niemeyer chose to build his house in Canoas, Barra da Tujica, which is a residential
neighbourhood located in the West Zone of Rio de Janeiro. The architect most likely chose
this location, because the West Zone is reasonably quiet, which makes it perfect for a
domestic dwelling. Another advantage of the location is the surrounding Tijuca Forest, which
is a national park and is a fine example of Brazils incredibly beautiful nature. It is often
referred to as the green spine of Rio de Janeiro and it accommodates hundreds of species of
the flora and fauna of the country. By placing his house there, the architect ensured that his
family and he will always be able to enjoy a wonderful view. One could see the beautiful hills
above the beaches (without the annoyance of the crowds) and the tropical vegetation that
surrounded the house, while still having all the benefits that living in the modern fast paced
city offered. In this way Niemeyer managed to cleverly combine the urban with the
countryside style of life.


View from the Tijuca Forest Flower from the Tijuca Forest
Source: http://www.unicerj.org.br/calendario/ Source: http://fotola.com/fotola/2005/
Dez.jpg Feb/sobreiro420e62cf9653d-web.jpg

This location resembles the settings in the Mendes area of Rio de Janeiro, where
Niemeyer built a house for his father and often went to visit him and even spent his holidays
there. It was a quiet place with a stream going though and extensive vegetation just like
Canoas. In his memoirs (Niemeyer 2000, p.29) the architect remembers the joy that the
privacy, the surrounding nature and the presence of his family gave him. Therefore looking at
the place he chose to build his own home, it can be seen he was looking for the same
atmosphere as in Mendes and he succeeded.
The house at Canoas was surrounded by greenery from all sides and had a swimming
pool at the front for the entertainment of the family. The winding paths in the gardens
provided numerous routes for a walk and relaxing chat with family and visiting friends. The
house itself had such a flowing shape that it was hard to distinguish it from the surroundings.
An atmosphere of harmony and piece was created in there and the architect could enjoy the
same simple pleasures as in Mendes. Furthermore, he could go back in the days when his wife
and he went to the Botanical gardens regularly. The memories from this experience were
vivid and he described them later on in his memoirs (Niemeyer, 2000, p.19): I loved to walk
along the gravel paths and admire the lush tropical vegetation or look at the pond and the
huge water lilies and everlastings blooming everywhere. It is curious how much this
description resembles the landscape around Niemeyers own dwelling.

View at the pool View from above
http://www.aimeemoore.com/images/ Andreas P., B., et al (2003),
Ncanoas008.jpg Oscar Niemeyer A Legend of Modernism



View at the garden paths from the interior View from above
Andreas P., B., et al (2003), Botey J. M., (1996), Oscar Niemeyer
Oscar Niemeyer A Legend of Modernism Works and Projects

It cannot be denied that the idea about integration between the building and the
surroundings was one of the driving forces of the design. It was not just about creating a
beautiful setting around the dwelling, the architect wanted to make the house a part of the
landscape. This is why Niemeyer modeled the whole building around a large rock that was
situated on the site and it was left there as the binding element of the whole project.
The upper floor of the house, which was defined by the means of Modernist architecture -
glass skin, concrete slab and steel, waved around the rock, incorporating half of it in the
interior and leaving the other half to freely flow into the pool outside. This created a strong
unity between the outside and the inside, the natural and the artificial. The result was a design
that was Modernist in nature but which contradicted Modernism on one of its main points
about creating universal and reproducible architecture, which is disconnected from the site.

View of the rock from the inside.
Andreas P., B., et al (2003), Oscar Niemeyer A Legend of Modernism

In the book by Andreas P., B., et al (2003), it says that after a visit Walter Gropius inquired
about the possibility of duplicating this house to which Niemeyer answered that it was only
the intellectual freedom to reinterpret the theme that can be reproduced. In this way Niemeyer
unconsciously set the attention of Modernism on domestic architecture despite his own
conviction as a communist that housing should be the same for everyone and thus it cannot
not be considered as a distinct aim or opportunity for Modernist architecture.

Continuing on the issue of the site specific house a few more linking elements need to be
mentioned. In order to minimize the visual separation between architecture and nature,
Niemeyer wrapped the living room in a skin of glass that allowed the interior to blend with
the exterior. Another trick was arranging the house according to the terrain. The lower floor is
tucked into the existing slope thus creating the feeling that the house is following the contours
of the site. This concept is reinforced by the flowing shape of the concrete roof, which blends
with the shape of the surrounding hills. This idea originated from the roof of the Dance Hall,
which Niemeyer designed in Pampulha. There the structure followed the outlines of the
island, on which the building stood.

The Dance Hall in Pampulha Niemeyers house
Andreas P., B., et al (2003), Botey J. M., (1996), Oscar Niemeyer
Oscar Niemeyer A Legend of Modernism Works and Projects

Section of the house
Komarov S., (1975), Oscar Niemeyer Architecture and Society

As it can be seen this remarkable integration between the building and the landscape was
achieved regardless of the use of artificial materials concrete, steel and glass, that were
usually associated with the high rise man made environment of the big cities. This emphasizes
the mastery that Niemeyer possessed over form, making it the dominant mediator between the
man made and the natural thus eliminating the need to use stone, wood or some other natural
material.
However, Niemeyers house was an innovation in Modernism not only in the context of
architectural approach and landscape integration but also in the context of technology. The
first noticeable feature is the free flowing horizontal concrete roof, which as explained above,

derived its characteristics from the Dance Hall in Pampuha. The roof is quite thin so that it
does not look too heavy over the glass skin of the living room and rests on small steel
supports. This elegant structure projects over the glass skin and slopes slightly in order to
provide sun protection, which is extremely important in a tropical country such as Brazil. This
innovative technological solution works in combination with the vast amount of vegetation
around the house, in order to provide more shade. In this way climate consideration was
brought into the palette of techniques used by Modernism.

View towards the exterior
Botey J. M., (1996), Oscar Niemeyer Works and Projects

Another technological challenge was to wrap the first floor in glass. The glass walls were
structurally free as the roof was supported on steel columns placed both on the inside and on
the outside, depending on the roof curvature and the structural needs of the building. In order
to achieve the flowing form of the walls, that did not always follow the shape of roof, glass
panels of various sizes were used. These panels had to create curves and also had to wrap
around the rock, making the task even more difficult.
On one side this method created a feeling of lightness and openness but on the other side
there was the danger that the occupants would feel exposed at night when the lights were on.
This is why the private part of the house that accommodated the bedrooms, was positioned
into the slope of the terrain. It is referred to as the lower floor and the space there feels
enclosed, private and secured by the surrounding mass of soil. An interesting prism like
windows ensured that enough daylight entered the bedrooms and that they were properly
ventilated, while still protecting the privacy of the occupants. The problem with letting light
in the bathrooms was also originally solved they were lit through concrete grids used as
skylights.

A window at the lower floor
Botey J. M., (1996), Oscar Niemeyer Works and Projects


The difference between the two floors did not consist only of a difference in location (on top
and into the terrain) but also in the shape and layout of the spaces. The first floor was
liberated and flowing, while the second was cellular and ordered.
The first floor accommodates all the living areas that the family shares. It has a free oval
shape and it is symbolically connected to the exterior and the lower floor through the use of
the rock.
The openness of the first floor has already been discussed. The achieved effect is due to
the choice of a glass skin as the main construction element for the walls. The curved shape
just strengthens the impression. However, the architect did not stop only at the shape and
material of the walls. The interior of the house is also open. The living and dining areas flow
into each other, forming a large free space that takes about two thirds of the whole floor area.
The rest of the floor accommodates the kitchen, a toilet and the staircase leading to the lower
floor. These rooms along with the rock on the other side of the staircase form a cellular
layout. However, those closed spaces are pushed to one side so that they do not interfere with
the plastic freedom of the living spaces.

Upper Floor Plan

1. Living area 2. Living area /Guest room 3. Dining area
4. Kitchen 5. Toilet 6.Rock 7. Swimming pool

There are three entrances to the house that lead to three different areas. The first one is at
the front side of the house where the pool is. This entrance takes the visitor into the living
area. As it was already mentioned, this is a large open space (the largest in the house in fact),

which provides multiple views of the garden due to the glass walls. There are only a few
pieces of furniture and they have all been pushed to the wall as to take less space. In this way
this part of the interior does not feel as an inside but rather as an extension to the outside,
where the freedom of motion is unlimited and the obstruction to the view is minimal. This
effect is made even more obvious by positioning a second door on the opposite side of the
house in a diagonal direction. It is almost as if the house is just a passage and not a permanent
dwelling. There is a kind of axis being formed, which directs people to go through the house
and continue their walk out in the open.
The second entrance, as described above is on the opposite wall of the first one. It is a
sliding door that leads to a cozy corner, defined by a curved wall. The dining table is
positioned in this corner and there is a view of the other side of the garden. There is a close
connection between the dining area, the toilet and the kitchen, which makes the circulation,
associated with the everyday meals of the family, easier. There is also minimal distance
between those spaces and they work efficiently.
The third entrance is connected to the kitchen. The separate access makes the kitchen
very independent things can be taken in and out without interrupting the rest of the house.
The kitchen can also be extra ventilated, without creating unwanted smells in the living areas.
To emphasize this, the architect even positioned the cooker next to the door on the plan.
The connection between the upper and the lower floor is a staircase, which is carved into
the rock, which in turn provides the connection between the interior and the exterior.
Therefore this is a key space within the house. It is designed in such a way that after having
climbed up the stairs from the floor below, the person arrives at a very concise space,
enclosed between the rock, the kitchen and the curved wall. This small volume opens up to
the large living space, thus forcing the person to go there. On the other hand, when going
down, this small space draws the person in, thus controlling the motion in the opposite
direction. Either way, the transition is always smooth.

Lower Floor Plan

2. Living area/Guest room 8. Bedroom 9. Bath

At the lower floor the person faces a completely different atmosphere. This is the private
part of the house, which accommodates the bedrooms. The floor is strictly subdivided by
straight walls and every free space is utilized by a wardrobe or a desk. On one side there are
two similar bedrooms with a bathroom in the middle, which is a classical arrangement for the
kids bedrooms in a house. In the corridor, between the two rooms, there is a desk that
supposedly can be used for doing homework. Right next to them is the master bedroom,
which is bigger and connected to a separate bathroom, thus applying another common
solution for a domestic dwelling. In this way all the family members have a degree of privacy.
The opposite end of the lower floor is taken by another bedroom with a bathroom next to it.
This independent arrangement is suitable for guests or any member of the family who wants
to be independent within the communal life in the house. This room along with the master
bedroom shares the only curved wall on this floor (excluding the curved wall of the masters
bathroom, which will be discussed later). As both rooms are meant to accommodate people
who are fully aware of their individuality and the need of extra privacy, it is natural that they
share this quirkiness of the house. This feature enhances their private spaces and invites
them to incorporate it into their individual style.
The area between the bedrooms acts as a connection not only between them, but also
between the upper and the lower floor. It has that flowing character, which is defined by the
unusual shape of the room and the curvature of the wall of the master bathroom and the
external wall. Thus the people going down the stairs are provided with a smooth transition
between the open (the public upper floor) and the enclosed (the private lower floor). It is also
because of this flowing nature, that the space is immediately identified as a communal area,
which is free ad open for everybodys individuality and is already familiar because of the
flowing nature of the communal spaces on the upper floor.
However, the difference between the upper and the lower floor is not fully described just
by the opposing nature of free - flowing and enclosed defined. There is a difference in the
purpose as well, which is not exhausted by the separation between public and private. The
first floor is obviously made especially for the Niemeyers family and bears Niemeyers
individual preferences. Even the furniture is designed by the architect with the help of his
daughter Anna Maria. However, the lower floor is a standard layout for a typical family with
two kids but in Niemeyers case there is only one kid his daughter Anna Maria and at the
time he lived at Canoas she already had her own life. Therefore the arrangement of the lower
floor probably represented the architects idea about the future, when the house would often
serve to accommodate his grandchildren when they visited.
There is one last feature of Niemeyers style that is incorporated in the house and needs to
be mentioned and this is the integration between architecture and art. This was a tradition that
was followed by Niemeyers friend Gustavo Capanema, who detailed the finishings, the
colours of the walls, and the furniture (Nemeyer, 2000, p.26) of his buildings. Even works
of art were brought in at the right stage (Nemeyer, 2000, p.26). The reason behind this was to
promote Brazilian creativity and culture. Niemeyer adopted this idea and throughout his
career he not only designed sculptural buildings, but he also insisted for the right sculptures
and paintings to go with them. In the case of his house the architect had sculptures by his
friend Alfredo Ceschiatti. The artist reflected the liberated and plastic curves of Niemeyers
architecture into the sensual curves of the female bodies, which were placed around the pool.
In conclusion it can be said that even though Niemeyers house at Canoas possesses
qualities such as flat, thin roof and full height glass, typical for some famous modernist
houses such as Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth House and Philip Johnson's Glass House, its
plastic curves and strong connection with the site, make it a phenomenon in the history of
Modernism.

The house at Canoas represents Oscar Niemeyers style in its every aspect, the style, which
he himself defines like this:

I am attracted to free-flowing, sensual curves. The curves that I find in the mountains of my
country, in the sinousness of its rivers, in the waves of the ocean, and on the body of the
beloved woman. Curves make up the entire Universe, the curved Universe of Einstein
( Niemeyer, 2000, p.3)

And it is this individuality and character that make the Canoas house so thrilling.

Mies van der Rohe - Farnsworth House, Plano, Illinois, 1951
Source: http://www.e-architect.co.uk/chicago/jpgs/farnsworth_house_gmad06_6.jpg

Philip Johnson - Glass House, New Canaan, Connecticut, 1949
Source: http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2007/glass_house/glass_house_1.jpg

Oscar Niemeyer Canoas House, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1953
Source:http://picasaweb.google.com/sahil.latheef/20070102BrazilTripSalvadorRioDeJaneiro
AndSaoPaulo/photo#5034764057329786930


Bibliography

Books

Andreas P., B., et al (2003), Oscar Niemeyer A Legend of Modernism, Berlin, Birkhuser
Publishers for Architecure

Botey J. M., (1996), Oscar Niemeyer Works and Projects, trans. G. Thompson, Barcelona,
Gustavo Gili.

Komarov S., (1975), Oscar Niemeyer Architecture and Society, trans. N. Konstantinov,
Moscow, Progress Publishers

Papadaki S., (1960), Oscar Niemeyer, London, Mayflower Publishing Company Limited

Niemeyer O., (2000), The Curves of Time the memoirs of Oscar Niemeyer, London, Phaidon
Press Limited

Websites

http://www.architectenwerk.nl/architectenpraktijk02/images /niemeyer1.jpg

http://www.unicerj.org.br/calendario/ Dez.jpg

http://fotola.com/fotola/2005/ Feb/sobreiro420e62cf9653d-web.jpg

http://www.aimeemoore.com/images/ ONcanoas008.jpg

http://www.e-architect.co.uk/chicago/jpgs/farnsworth_house_gmad06_6.jpg

http://img.timeinc.net/time/photoessays/2007/glass_house/glass_house_1.jpg

http://picasaweb.google.com/sahil.latheef/20070102BrazilTripSalvadorRioDeJaneiroAndSao
Paulo/photo#5034764057329786930

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ARC 203a Assignment Oscar Niemeyers House in Canoas, Brazil, 1953

Student number 060194356 1

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