Jose Zanine Caldas, “Namoradeira” conversation seat

Jose Zanine Caldas

‘Namoradeira’ conversation seat
1965

Solid sculpted pequi wood, in only one piece. Signed «Zanine», twice, at the base, on each side. The back and the seat are in the same block. Those two armchairs are united and reversed, that allows to be facing the interlocutor. This Namoradeira is a « useful sculpture». Become a truly iconic piece of Zanine’s work, this confident reveals all the creative strenght of the architecture who yearn for a total art. The wood used, Pequi, is a fruit tree from the Minas Gerais region (Belo Horizonte). This tree has an important cultural role. The Pequi fruit is very popular. There is a celeration after each harvest. Carving this wood is a challenge as it is dense and wild.

Height 23 ¼ in - Width 34 ½ in - Depth 30 ¾ in.

Zanine Caldas’ private collection, designed for his own Joatinga house, Rio de Janeiro.

Literature :
- Catalogue de l’exposition «Modernité du design brésilien de 1950 à 1980», du 6 septembre au
31 octobre 2018, Galerie Chastel-Maréchal, Paris, notre fauteuil reproduit pp. 6, 10-13
- Movel Moderno Brasilerio, Marcelo Vasconcellos & al., éd. Olhared, Sao Paulo, 2017, p. 129
- Desenho da utopia - mobiliario moderno brasileiro, Ruy Teixeira & Jayme Vargas, éd. Olhares,
Sao Paulo, 2016, p.122
- Modern furniture in Brazil, Maria Cecilia Loschiavo dos Santos, éd. Olhares, Sao Paulo, 2015,
p. 153
- Movel brasileiro moderno, Marcelo Vasconcellos & al., éd. Aeroplano, FGV Projetos, Rio de
Janeiro, 2011, pp. 172-173
- Zanine – sentir e Fazer, sous la direction de Suely Ferreira da Silva, éditions Livraria agir editora,
Rio de Janeiro, 1988, p. 40