Side Gallery presents Martin Eisler & Carlo Hauner, curated by founder and director of the gallery Luis Sendino. The exhibition presents some of their most relevant and unique works created over a decade, between 1950 and 1960, by Forma Brazil, the company they co-founded, bringing a fresh perspective to the Brazilian modern design scene.
The exhibition makes a much needed overview of the trajectory of this two great creators who, regardless of their great relevance in Southamerican design during the XX century, are barely documented with a few monographs and publications of their work. Most of it is only documented on the catalogues of Forma, the company they founded to edit their designs, or in some advertisements from leading magazines of the time, such as Domus, that showed Forma’s offerings as a selection of furniture, ceramics and textiles whose combination of materials and organic forms exemplified an elegant and accesible modernist...ideal.
Born in 1913 in Vienna, Austria, Martin Eisler received his architecture degree in 1936. However, as in the life of so many Brazilian designers, it was the looming thundercloud of the second world war that made him move just after his studies were finished. First to Czechoslovakia (where his parents lived) and later, in 1938, to Argentina. Here Eisler began to exercise his profession as an architect and interior designer and opened up his interior design firm Interieur Forma. In the early 1950s he decided to move to Brazil.
Born in Brescia in 1927, Carlo Hauner studied technical drawing and drawing at the Brera Academy in Milan, Italy. In 1948 he successfully participated in the Venice Biennale after which he moved to Brazil, where he dedicated himself to the design of textile, ceramics, furniture and architecture. In only a very short time he founded a furniture production company and purchased a factory from Lina Bo Bardi and her husband Pietro Bardi, renaming it Móveis Artesanal.
In 1953 Hauner met Martin Eisler, who was looking for help to produce furniture for the home of his brother-in-law, Ernesto Wolf. Eisler reached out to Hauner and the rest is history. The two men connected and with Wolf’s financial backing, they opened Galeria Artesanal (a store to their company Móveis Artesenal) on a busy street in São Paulo.
Being highly ambitious and with an eye on the international market as well as the upcoming office market, Móvies Artesanal later changed into Forma. Along with Oca, Forma became one of the biggest names in Brazilian furniture production. Even managing to attract an exclusive license to sell Knoll furniture bringing big names in international design such as Mies Van Der Rohe, Charles Eames and Harry Bertoia to the Brazilian furniture market.
Hauner and Eisler’s designs are characterized by the use of Brazilian woods, thin tubular frames and a range from furniture, to ceramics and textiles. Some of their most famous designs are the “rib” lounge chair, the "concha/haia" chair or “reversible” lounge chair, both shown in this exhibition.
In 1958 Hauner decided to return to Italy to open Forma di Brescia, which catered to i.g. the embassy of Brazil in Rome and Vatican City. Eventually Hauner sold his part of the company, leaving Eisler solely at the helm, to focus himself on painting and the making of wine on Salina, a little isle just above Sicily. After a full life the artist, designer and serial entrepreneur died in 1997.
Forma prospered during the 60’s and 70’s, until Martin Eisler died in 1977. His original company in Argentina still exists and at the moment is the sole heir to Hauner and Eisler’s Heritage.
Although Hauner and Eisler designed and produced many pieces, the depth and quality of their work that is reaching the waterfront is still only the tip of the iceberg. We are sure many more interesting pieces will find the spotlight during the coming years.
Imágenes de la Exposición
Martin Eisler & Carlo Hauner Armchair, 1950s - Cortesía de SIDE GALLERY
Entrada actualizada el el 10 oct de 2017
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