Six joyful Brazilian buildings

To celebrate the publication of Humanise in Brazil, designer and filmmaker Marina Willer shares her pick of joyful Brazilian buildings.

My father was an architect who loved to draw, and I too have loved drawing, and buildings, and design, and colour, ever since I was a child.

I think we all intuitively recognise the difference between those urban environments that feel sterile, or even hostile, and the ones where we want to pause, linger, or come back to. The world is really divided right now, but design can make change happen. So the Humanise campaign for buildings and cities that connect us, lift us up, and bring us joy feels increasingly necessary.

Brazil is a place full of human, engaging and joyful buildings. Here are a few of my favourites.

1. Conjunto Habitacional Pedregulho – by Affonso Eduardo Reidy, 1946

An apartment complex built to house municipal workers. The serpentine wave of the building, which also contains a children's theatre, laundry, nursery, kindergarten and market, was designed to give each apartment a view of Guanabara Bay. I love the shape, and the blue against the colour of the wood and the integral screens.

Images: Alejandro Stein

2. Igreja da Pampulha by Oscar Niemeyer, 1942

Think about Niemeyer’s work and you probably conjure up the enormous, circular, statement buildings he designed in Brasilia. But this little lakeshore church in Belo Horizonte is among his earliest work – and it’s quite a different experience. The organic, flowing shape, the human scale, and the rich materials like the blue and white tiles are really joyful. And though it was considered pretty shocking at the time it was built, it’s now part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I love it.

Images: LCR Ribeiro and Lucas Nishimoto

3. Roof Garden on Banco Safra headquarters by Roberto Burle Marx, 1983

I’m a designer naturally drawn to pattern and colour, so I really admire the work of Brazilian landscape architect Burle Marx (who was also a painter, sculptor, set designer and environmental activist). If you’ve ever been to Rio you’ve probably wandered along his Copacabana Beach promenade, but I particularly love the organic shapes of this winter garden perched on top of the Safra Bank HQ in Sao Paulo.

Images: Leonardo Finotti and Lyos Gallery

4. SESC Pompeia by Lina Bo Bardi, 1986

Originally a drum factory, this amazing cultural complex in Sao Paulo is a great example of creatively reimagining an existing building. It’s the work of Lina Bo Bardi, whose socially utopian vision of modernism has been so influential. She stripped the building down to its concrete and brick, and it’s now a landmark which defines this area of the city from a distance – but close-up it also feels rich and layered and full of stories.

Images: Ciro Miguel and Nando Trugillo

5. Niterói Contemporary Art Museum - MAC by Oscar Niemeyer, 1996

A masterpiece of curves by Niemeyer which houses a collection of modern art, and frames some incredible views of Rio’s Guanabara Bay. I love how it seems to float above the cliff top, and also how the sinuous ramps by which you reach the first and second floors become a very public, shared space.

Images: Ranimiro and Donatas Dabravolskas

6. Paudalho Popular Houses by NEBR Arquitectura, 2021

Ordinary housing – if it’s designed and made with care – can bring joy just as much as big architectural statement buildings. I love these simple, honest houses in Paudalho in the north east of Brazil. There’s something really appealing about the modest proportions, the clean design, the simple materials, and the way colour is used to define each home. Just because housing is affordable, it shouldn’t have to be poor quality.

Images: Philippe Petrovsky

Designer and filmmaker Marina Willer is a partner at Pentagram. She made several films for the British architect Richard Rogers, and her first feature film won best Brazilian short film at the São Paulo Film Festival in 2004. She created graphics and film for the Royal Academy’s major exhibition on the birth of Brazilian Modernism in 2025.