Acrylic on cloth, stretched and framed, 1988. 1051x1580 mm; 59x62 inches. Signed and dated in felt-tip pen and ink, lower right recto.
Acquired directly from the artist by the current owner; private collection, Pennsylvania.
Known primarily for his influential and widespread contributions to landscape architecture, Burle Marx (1909-1994) was also a dedicated painter whose works explored the tenets of Modernism. While still a student at the National Academy of Fine Arts in Rio de Janeiro, he designed his first garden for the Schwartz House, Rio de Janeiro, designed by Burle Marx's professor at the time, Lucio Costa, and later enriched by Oscar Niemeyer (see lot 429), which brought Modernist design to landscape gardening. He quickly gained acclaim, designing the parks and promenades along Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro, and receiving commissions to design gardens around the world. Burle Marx founded a landscape studio in 1955 and in the same year he established a landscape company, called Burle Marx & Cia. Ltda. He opened an office in Caracas, Venezuela in 1956 and started working with architects Jose Tabacow and Haruyoshi Ono in 1968. Burle Marx worked on commissions throughout Brazil, Argentina, Chile and many other South American countries, France, South Africa, Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles.
Despite his success as a landscape architect, Burle Marx consistently viewed himself foremost as a fine artist and continued painting throughout his career. In addition, his mosaic designs for the pavement bordering the Copacabana Beach are among the most famous in Brazil. In 1970, he represented Brazil at the 35th Venice Biennale.
Burle Marx's work continues to be celebrated and studied today. An upcoming exhibition at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx will explore his impact on landscape architecture through his renowned designs and his commitment to environmental conservation in his native Brazil and also bring together a wide collection of his his paintings, prints, drawings and textiles.
