5: FERNANDO AND HUMBERTO CAMPANA, Sushi sofa < Design Masterworks, 19 May 2015 < Auctions

Design Masterworks

19 May 2015

Design Masterworks

Fernando and Humberto Campana
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Sushi sofa

Brazil, 2002
rubber, Ethylene vinyl acetate, fabric, carpet, stainless steel 29¾ h × 63 w × 29½ d in (76 × 160 × 75 cm)

estimate: $40,000–60,000

result: $56,250

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This work is from the edition of twenty-four made in twelve colors with two examples in each color. Stamped signature and hand applied edition number to underside: [Campana 1/12].
literature: Campana Brothers: Complete Works (So Far), Campanas, ppg. 162-177 discuss series

Sushi Sofa

An Inspired Design

São Paulo is a textural city. It is this texture that makes it such a big mess with so many different volumes, shapes and colors. We are always interested in investigating these aspects of our town. Some things you can find everywhere in the world, but there are also things that seem very particular to São Paulo. We try to bring these characteristics out in our work, and often in a literal way. - Fernando Campana

The Brazilian designers, Humberto and Fernando Campana draw inspiration from unusual sources. Famously inspired from the favelas in their native São Paulo, the Campana Brothers find beauty and mystery through the recycling and reuse of discarded and humble materials. In their Sushi series, fabric, foam and even carpet trimmings are gathered and rolled, their edges creating circular patterns of bright color and texture. The sofa form is a minimal vessel for the riotous and surprisingly joyous surface mimicking the vibrant visual landscape of their beloved Brazil.

Design in not about functionality, today design is and can be political. We can send a message through an object.

—Humberto Campana

Fernando and Humberto Campana

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Brothers, Fernando (born 1961) and Humberto (born 1953) founded Estudio Campana in 1983 and quickly established their voice in the contemporary design world for their use of untraditional materials. Exploring ideas of transformation and reinvention, the Campanas create intriguing forms using scraps of cloth and wood, plastic tubing, wires and stuffed animals. The Campanas have worked with a number of manufacturers including Alessi, Baccarat, Edra, Lacoste, Louis Vuitton, Magis and Venini, to name a few. In 2008 the brothers won Designer of the Year in Miami, in 2013 they were listed among the top 100 most influential Brazilian personalities by Forbes magazine and in 2014 Wallpaper* listed them among the top 100 major players in design. Special editions pieces by the Campanas can be found in the permanent collections of museums around the world including the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and Musée Les Arts Décoratifs, Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in São Paulo.

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