1960's Figured ROSEWOOD coffee table designed by SERGIO RODRIGUES. (Born 1927) With original Brazillian transport label underneath.
$12,750.00
Formerly owned by Texas Governor John Connally and sold at his 1988 bankruptcy auction held by Hart Galleries Houston, Texas.
Accompanied by typed letter (From Hart Galleries) and signed in ink, Nellie and John Connally.
Letter reads:
Nellie and John Connally
January 1988
Nellie and I thank you for your support at the auction of our personal possessions at Hart Galleries this month. Your purchase:
Lot 886. Custom Made South American rectangular figured hardwood cocktail table; 59" length.
was one of the items from our collection. We sincerely hope that you derive as much pleasure from ownership in the years to come as it gave us in the years past.
Sincerely,
Nellie & John Connally
****
Born in 1927, Sergio Rodrigues is considered one of the founding fathers of Brazilian furniture design. He graduated from the National School of Architecture in
Rio in 1952 and by 1953 he had already opened the first modern art and
furniture store in Curtiba in partnership with the Italian Hauner
brothers. Though not a commercial success it formed the basis of the
later Forma company founded in
Sao Paulo state in 1954 and it was here that he met up with and was
influenced by Gregori Warchavchik and Lina Bo Bardi. In 1955 he founded
Oca which was to become one of the most powerful influences on
Brazilian furniture. Perhaps his most famous design, the Poltrona Mole (“soft armchair”) was created in 1957. It won first prize at the IV Concorso Internatiozionale del Mobili in
Cantu, Italy . The company Isa, in
Bergamo, Italy , manufactured the chair and exported it to many countries. Since the 1973 Sergio has lived in
Rio de Janeiro working independently on many
architectural and furniture projects. His furniture is in many
important buildings including the Brazilian Embassy in Rome,
Brasilia
University and the National Theatre in
Brasilia . His work has appeared in many international exhibitions
including MOMA in New York and he received the Lapiz de Plata award for
his whole collection of work at the Biennial Exhibition of Architecture
in
Buenos Aires
