Brazilian Modern Bar Cart in Hardwood Iron White Formica Geraldo de Barros 1950s

Geraldo de Barros (1923-1998) was one of the key players of the modernist movement in Brazil in the 1950s. He began his career as a painter and was a pioneer of abstract photography in Brazil in the 1940s (his works are part of the MoMa collection). Eventually, Geraldo de Barros went to furniture-making in the 1950s, seeking a more popular art form that would make his work available to a larger audience. In 1954, he founded the company Unilabor with a Dominican priest and skilled tradesmen. Unilabor was run by its employees and all benefits shared between them, thus becoming the first communitarian business in modern Brazilian history. Unilabor quickly grew to become one of the most important furniture companies in the country, but internal disputes led to the end of the company in 1967. In 1964, De Barros founded another furniture design company called Hobjeto, which had a more capitalistic approach without losing his constructive characteristics. Until his retirement in 1989, de Barros designed numerous furniture lines in this industrial manner. Nowadays, De Barros’ pieces are rare, and few have been preserved.

Size: H79.8, W89.0, D45.0 (cm) H31.4, W35.0, D17.7 (in)
Materials: Brazilian hardwood, iron, formica