Campana Brothers | Favela Chair
Price available upon request
- Description
The "Favela" armchair, model created in 2003.
The geometric structure made by random assembly of pine slats.
Materials: Pine wood slats
Dimensions: 30 1/4"H x 25 3/8"W x 25 1/4"D (77H x 64.5L x 64D CM)
The "Favela" armchair is a striking example of their innovative approach to design, deeply rooted in their Brazilian heritage.
The chair tells a story of Brazilian resourcefulness, inspired by São Paulo's informal favela housing built from scrap materials.
Fernando and Humberto Campana were struck by how residents constructed homes from salvaged wood and waste, a process they call gambiarra — inventive improvisation. The armchair captures the chaotic yet intuitive construction methods of these communities. Crafted from discarded wood slats, glued and nailed by hand, each chair is unique, reflecting the haphazard architecture of shantytowns. The design transforms humble, seemingly worthless materials into an iconic piece, blending low-tech origins with high-end craftsmanship while delivering a powerful social commentary.
It influenced a generation of designers, inspiring them to explore unconventional materials and cultural narratives in their own work.
The Campana Brothers—Humberto Campana (born 1953 in Rio Claro, Brazil) and Fernando Campana (born 1961 in Brotas, Brazil)—are Brazilian contemporary designers.
Strongly rooted in Brazilian culture and traditions, their work carries yet universal values in its core, such as freedom and human dignity, by encouraging self-identity searching through life experiences. Incorporating the idea of transformation and reinvention, their creative process raises everyday materials to nobility, bringing not only creativity into design, but also Brazilian characteristics – the colors, the mixtures, the creative chaos – the triumph of simple solutions, in an artistic and poetic way.
Their works are included in major design collections such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art and The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, and the Design Museum in London.
While many of their designs are produced in limited editions by their own company, Estudio Campana, they have also collaborated with prominent furniture and product manufacturers, including Alessi, Capellini, Edra, and Fontana Arte.