Bar stool

The bar stools were designed for the snack bar of the cultural centre SESC Pompéia in São Paulo by Lina Bo Bardi (1914–1992), an Italian-Brazilian architect. The cultural centre opened in an old factory building in 1982; today it hosts very diverse events, such as theatre, music, gymnastics, swimming, galleries or workshops. Lina Bo Bardi is most renowned for the MASP building, the art museum of São Paulo from 1968, but otherwise her energy was channeled into deep social involvement. Most of her projects were done in poor neighbourhoods, aiming to contribute to new democratic spaces, such as the cultural centre SESC Pompéia. Bardi, however, was almost self-effacing in regard to the endeavour: "No one was transforming anything. We just found a beautiful factory building (…). The centre’s design evolved from the desire to create a different reality, but we just installed a few minor amenities, water and some heating.”