The Claudio Santoro National Theater, ceramic tile panel by Athos Bulcão, Brasília
Vincent Fournier French, born Burkina Faso
Not on view
Rather than focusing on the monumental modernist aesthetic of the city, in his 2012 series Brasilia, French artist Vincent Fournier portrays scenes that demonstrate the relationship between people and architecture. Capturing a beautifully composed moment between two brothers, this photograph is dominated by the bright yellow and white ceramic tiles in the background. These ceramic azulejos were designed by Athos Bulcão (1918-2008), who worked with the architect Oscar Niemeyer throughout his career and designed many wall interiors in Brasilia. Documentation of modernist interiors usually emphasize the aesthetic correlation between architecture and furniture design. Here Fournier’s composition vividly represents the inhabitants and users of those decorative spaces.