Flavio de Carvalho

Who was Flavio de Carvalho?

Flávio de Rezende Carvalho was a Brazilian architect and artist.

Carvalho was educated in France from 1911 to 1914, and then in Newcastle-upon-Tyne until 1922, attending the King Edward the Seventh School of Fine Arts and Durham University's Armstrong College. In Newcastle he obtained degrees in both civil engineering and fine art. Carvalho returned to São Paulo in 1922, joining a local construction firm, before designing his own buildings and creating numerous artworks. Le Corbusier defined him as a "Romantic Revolutionary".

As an artist Carvalho represented Brazil at the 1950 Venice Biennial. Amongst his most noted works in the medium is the series Tragic Series which depicted the death of his mother. Carvalho was also an influential writer, penning the play Dance of the Dead God for the Experimental Theater in 1933.

Carvalho was noted for his experimental designs, such as a scheme for the Governor's Palace in São Paulo in 1927, the Main House at Capuava Ranch and a residential complex at Alameda Lorena. Cavalcanti writes that "His freedom and lack of commitment to rigid dogmas led him to create a personal language that mixed styles, references and construction techniques."