Debaixo do Bloco Transforms São Paulo's Bienal Pavilion into Intimate Brasília Interior

Debaixo do Bloco, led by Clay Rodrigues, has created an interior installation within Oscar Niemeyer's Bienal Pavilion in São Paulo that translates the monumental urban memory of Brasília into a domestic scale. The open-plan layout merges kitchen, dining, and living areas, using a striking green carpet that nods to Brasília's classic interiors and Niemeyer's French Communist Party Headquarters in Paris. Curved partitions, inspired by connecting passages between ministry annexes, zone the space without touching the ceiling, maintaining lightness. Materiality includes precast concrete counters referencing Brasília's rapid construction. The design highlights the pavilion's original pilotis columns and window frames by Niemeyer, framing a garden by Otávio Augusto Teixeira Mendes. Furniture by Jorge Zalszupin, Joaquim Tenreiro, and Sergio Rodrigues, along with Dominici lighting and a tapestry by Tarsila do Amaral, introduce historical layers. The project reflects a global trend toward high-quality renovation, similar to Studio 163's Portland stone deep retrofit and Office S&M's Cork Loft extension.