Brasilia

A definitive example of 20th century modernist urbanism

Laid out along a monumental east-west axis, crossed by a north-south axis curved to follow the topography as a transportation thoroughfare, Brasilia is a definitive example of 20th century modernist urbanism.

Created as the Brazilian capital in the central western part of the country from 1956 to 1960 as part of President Juscelino Kubitschek’s national modernization project, the city brought together ideas of grand administrative centres and public spaces with new ideas of urban living as promoted by Le Corbusier in six-storey housing blocks (quadras) supported on pylons which allowed the landscape to flow beneath and around them.

The city’s planning is noteworthy for the remarkable congruence of Lucio Costa’s urban design (the ‘Plano Piloto’) and Oscar Niemeyer’s architectural creations, most powerfully reflected in the intersection between the monumental and thoroughfare axes, which stands as the determining factor of the city’s urban scheme and underscores the representative character of Three Powers Square (Praça dos Três Poderes) and the Esplanade of the Ministries (Esplanada dos Ministérios).

This also manifested in the geometry of the National Congress and in the new approach to urban living embodied in the Neighborhood Units (Unidade de Vizinhança) and their corresponding Superblocks (Superquadras).

Brasilia is a singular artistic achievement, a prime creation of the human genius, representing, on an urban scale, the living expression of the principles and ideals advanced by the Modernist Movement and effectively embodied in the tropics through the urban and architectural planning of Lucio Costa and Oscar Niemeyer.

Subterranean space located on Three Power Square dedicated to the town planner Lucio Costa. The main attraction is a large tridimensional plan of the city.

Paranoá Lake, in Brasília, was planned, and therefore is an artificial lake, constructed in 1959. It is 40 km² and 48m deep. One of the Lake’s objectives was to raise the city’s humidity, since Brasília is naturally very dry.

But Lake Paranoá has also become a tourist spot due to its beauty and the leisure activities it offers.

Buildings

Brasilia is a unique example of urban planning brought to fruition in the 20th century. It is an expression of the urban principles of the Modernist Movement as set out in the 1943 Athens Charter, in Le Corbusier’s 1946 treatise How to Conceive Urbanism, and in the architectural designs of Oscar Niemeyer.

This includes the buildings of the three powers (Presidential Palace, Supreme Court and Congress with its twin highrise buildings flanked by the cupola of the Senate building and by the inverted one of the House of Representatives), and the Cathedral with its 16 parabaloids 40 metres in height, the Pantheon of Juscelino Kubitschek and the National Theatre.

The Cathedral was inaugurated in May 1970. Consecrated architect Oscar Niemeyer designed the church, as well as the Alvorada Palace, the National Congress, the Planalto Palace and the Federal Supreme Court buildings, among others.

The church has a peculiar beauty. Held by 16 arched pillars that form a thorn crown, the central nave is covered by an immense stained glass panel projected by Marianne Peretti, made out of glass fiber pieces in blue, green, white and brown.

Inside the church, three huge angel sculptures by Alfredo Ceschiatti float from the ceiling suspended by steel cables. The baptistery is covered in tiles painted by Athos Bulcão. The Via Sacra is a piece of work by Di Cavalcanti and the image of Our Lady Aparecida is a replica of the original, this one located in Aparecida, in the state of Sao Paulo. There are four bronze statues in front of the church, each one three meters high: The Evangelists, by Alfredo Ceschiatti and Dante Croce. Beside it is the Steeple, with a set of bells donated by Spain.

Opened in 1956 as Juscelino Kubitschek’s first official residence in Brasilia, Catetinho is a wooden building, hence known as the Wooden Palace. Conceived by Oscar Niemeyer, the structure was built in only 10 days and turned into a museum. It pays homage to Juscelino Kubitschek and the early days of the construction. Its main attractions are the rooms of guests, the rooms of the president, the Office Room and the kitchen, which was rebuilt with scenographic material.

Opened in 1967, the TV Tower is one of Lucio Costa’s few architectural projects. The Tower is 224 meters high and has an observatory 75 meters from ground level that allows a 360-degree panoramic view of the city.