After getting his start in 1936, renowned Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer made his mark around the world. Throughout his celebrated career, he worked on nearly 600 projects in numerous countries including Brazil, America, Lebanon Spain and France.

Who is Oscar Niemeyer?

Born in Rio de Janeiro 15 December 1907, Niemeyer always had a passion for drawing. When he began work with modernist architect Lúcio Costa in 1934, Niemeyer collaborated with him to design Brasil's pavillion at the New York World's Fair and Brazil's Ministry of Education and Health building. His work with Costa and with Swiss-French archictect Le Corbusier inspired Niemeyer’s modernist approach, though he went on to develop a style all his own.

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Niemeyer died in 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, just ten days shy of his 105th birthday. Until a year before his death, he reportedly continued to go to his office each day to work on his designs.  

What is Niemeyer known for?

Through his use of concrete Niemeyer was able to abandon architectural norms and incorporate the natural curves and shapes found in nature that made his buildings famous. By refusing to limit himself to the traditional constructs of architecture, Niemeyer incorporated a flow and grace to his buildings that made them stand out from the rest. 

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"It is not the right angle that attracts me. Neither does the, hard, inflexible, man-made straight line. What attracts me is the free-form, sensual curve. The curve that I find on the mountains of my country, its winding river courses, the clouds in the sky, the body of the woman I love."

                         The Oscar Niemeyer Museum is also called the Museum of the Eye due to its unique shape. It is located in Curitiba, Brazil and was inaugurated in 2002. (Photo: Getty Images/Buda Mendes)

His reputation for unique, eye-catching buildings eventually earned him the chance to collaborate with several architects to design the United Nations Headquarters in New York City.  

What does Niemeyer mean to Brazil?

Because of the recognition he received throughout Brazil and the rest of the world for his designs, in 1956 Brazil’s president, Juscelino Kubitschek, approached Niemeyer to design buildings for the country’s new capital, Brasilia.

                   The Cathedral of Brasilia is one of many of the buildings Oscar Niemeyer designed for Brazil's capital city. (Photo: Getty Images/Mario Tama)

Niemeyer eagerly accepted the opportunity, viewing it as a chance to use architecture to make the city a kind of utopia. He designed the city to be spread out equally, so there were no poorer or richer parts of Brasilia.

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During his life and after his death, the prolific architect was memorialised throughout Brazil to recognise his numerous contributions to the country. Niemeyer inspired a generation of artists and architects who came after him, leaving nods to him in the form of buildings and murals around the world.