Sergio Rodrigues

Creative, irreverent, iconic – that may be the best way to define the work of Sergio Rodrigues, one of the most important designers in the history of Brazilian furniture. Throughout his career, which started in the late 1950s, he created 1200 pieces, including benches, armchairs, chairs and tables.

Sergio was born in 1927, and in 1952 he graduated from the Architecture and Urbanism School of University of Brazil – what is currently the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Sergio was responsible for loosening up the way we see a house and sit, breaking with the stiffness of the tapered legs style. In 1955, he created Oca – a mix of shop, studio and art gallery. Located at Praça General Osório, in Ipanema, Oca carried Dominici light fixtures, fabrics designed by plastic artist Fayga Ostrower, Forma furniture, as well as pieces signed by Sergio. It became a meeting point for the local intelligentsia.

In 1957, at the request of his friend, photographer Otto Stupakoff, he created the Mole armchair, a sofa for his studio. The piece turned out to be too expensive and got stuck on the shelves, but also won the first place at the Cantù International Furniture Competition in Italy. Under the name Sheriff, it was manufactured by Isa, a company in Bergamo, Italy, and exported to several countries.