Sergio Rodrigues: Designer best known for the 'Mole' armchair who sought to express the spirit of his native Brazil
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Sergio Rodrigues, who has died of liver failure at the age of 86, was a celebrated designer, whose "Mole" armchair is among the best-known pieces of Brazilian mid-20th century design. A native of Rio de Janeiro, Rodrigues studied architecture before turning to furniture design – always attempting in his work to express the spirit of Brazil. He designed more than 1,200 different pieces of furniture, though none would prove as enduring a hit as his "Mole" armchair, the name of which means "soft" in Portuguese.
Created in 1957, the award-winning chair has a squat wooden frame topped by interlocking leather pillows fitted with thick straps. The design won top prize in the Cantu international furniture competition in Italy in 1961. In 1974 New York's Museum of Modern Art acquired a "Mole" for its collection. "The piece of furniture is not just the shape, not just the material, but also something inside it. It's the piece's spirit," he said. "It's the Brazilian spirit."
Maria Cecilia Loschiavo dos Santos, a historian specialising in Brazilian design, said the "Mole" represented a "great revolution ... The imperious desire to conceive of a piece of furniture that would express national identity led Sergio Rodrigues to a design that defied the existing styles."
Like many of his other designs, the chair was initially made from jacaranda, a prized Brazilian hardwood that was harvested into near-oblivion. The factory licensed to produce his designs switched to woods like eucalyptus, pau marfim and ivorywood.
Furniture designed by Rodrigues will continue to be produced: vintage "Mole" armchairs retail in Rio antique shops for the equaivalent of around £5,000. Other well-known Rodriques designs include the so-called "Kilin" armchair, from 1973, and the "Diz" from 2003. The striking "Chifruda", or "horned" chair, from 1962, is known for the sweeping wooden slat at the top of the backrest that resembles a pair of antlers.
Rodrigues, who also famously decorated the Brazilian embassy in Rome in 1959, was to be honoured at the forthcoming IDA design fair, which opens next week as part of Rio's celebrated ArtRio international art fair.
Rodrigues is survived by his wife, Vera Beatriz, and three children.
JENNY BARCHFIELD
Sérgio Rodrigues, designer and architect: born Rio de Janeiro 1927; married Vera Beatriz (three children); died 1 September 2014.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments