Oswaldo Bratke

Oswaldo Arthur Bratke was the author of an elegant architecture, with soft lines that were simplified in his modernist projects. In addition to being an exceptional architect, Bratke enjoyed a touch of design, having created lighting fixtures and furniture.

During a period that spanned over four decades, Bratke designed more than 1300 buildings, including homes, schools, offices, industrial plants, train stations and hospitals, in many different parts of Brazil.

His flawless drawings conjured thoughts of this unique generation – one that transitioned from the rigid teachings of the fine arts to the discovery of modernism. In the early golden years of the 1950s, Bratke started the urbanization of the district of Morumbi, along with Oscar Americano, for whom he designed one of the most emblematic houses of the time. In that same decade, he was invited to sail up the Araguari and Amapari rivers, in the state of Amapá, on board of a small boat, to see the area that would become one of his most daring projects: Vila Serra do Navio. The small town, located in the middle of the forest, was planned to be completely self-sufficient. It has been designated as a cultural heritage site by the Brazilian Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage (Iphan).