Branco & Preto

In the provincial São Paulo of the 1950s, a group of architects consisting of Roberto Aflalo, Jacob Ruchti, Miguel Forte, Plínio Croce, Carlos Milan and Chen Y Hwa – who was no Brazilian, but Chinese – got together to create a furniture shop that could cater to their modern and sophisticated view of architecture.

In 1952, the young vanguardists embraced Aflalo’s idea and founded Branco & Preto, where they sold modern furniture made of Brazilian materials and with impeccable finishing: something completely new at the time.

The shop became a reference for architects, who would visit it to become familiar with the trends and discuss the pieces that broke with the traditional, stout lines used until then. It remained open for ten years, during which they created pieces of furniture that still inspire Brazilian designers today.

The style pursued by the young architects of Branco & Preto in the 1950s was reedited by ETEL in 2005.