Oscar NIEMEYER

Oscar Niemeyer began his studying architecture at the Rio School of Fine Arts in 1930. Starting from 1936, he took part in the conception of the new Ministry of Education and Health building in Rio de Janeiro. In 1952, he worked with Le Corbusier for the creation of the new UN building in New York. Fame started coming in 1956 when he is entrusted with the main public projects of the new capital, Brasilia, including the cathedral, the National Congress of Brazil, the ministries etc. When the military dictatorship started in Brazil, he was already internationally renowned and decided to go into exile in France. There, he worked on several projects, such as the headquarters of the French Communist Party at the Colonel Fabien plaza in Paris (1965-1980), the headquarters of the newspaper l’Humanité in Saint-Denis (1989), or the Bourse du travail in Bobigny, showing his political commitment. Back in Brazil, he designed the museum of Contemporary Arts of Niteroi, then the Sao Paulo auditorium, unveiled in 2005. On December 12th 2007, he is named commander of the Legion of Honor for his 100th anniversary, by the French ambassador in Brazil.