# Brazilian Concrete Design

> A São Paulo and Rio movement in which concrete art, concrete poetry and Brazil's first design offices shared one vocabulary: Max Bill's mathematically generated geometry, serial repetition and sans-serif type. Sparked by Bill's 1951 retrospective at MASP and the first São Paulo Bienal, it passed through Ulm via Alexandre Wollner into Forminform (1957) and ESDI (1963), producing rigorous trademarks, posters and a celebrated newspaper redesign.

- Period: 1951–1975
- Where: Latin America & Caribbean
- Origin: São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Branch: Rational modernism
- Also known as: Concretismo, Brazilian concrete and neo-concrete design, Design concreto
- Page: https://stylogeny.com/styles/brazilian-concrete/

## How it works

- Generate the image from a rule (repetition, rotation or progression of one module) rather than from depiction.
- Treat the page as a field of tension between a few flat geometric elements and the white ground.
- Set words spatially, as concrete poetry does, so that position, spacing and size carry meaning.
- Restrict colour to one or two saturated inks with black on white.
- Construct trademarks as geometric signs that can be drawn with ruler and compass.

## Its design choices

Defining choices make the style, characteristic ones are usual, occasional ones turn up now and then.

### Layout & composition
- [Modular grid](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/modular-grid/) (characteristic)
- [Dynamic asymmetry](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/dynamic-asymmetry/) (characteristic)
- [All-over field](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/all-over-field/) (characteristic)
- [Diagonal axis](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/diagonal-axis/) (occasional)

### Space & hierarchy
- [Repetition & rhythm](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/repetition-and-rhythm/) (defining)
- [Generous white space](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/generous-white-space/) (characteristic)
- [Visual tension](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/visual-tension/) (occasional)

### Typography
- [Geometric sans](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/geometric-sans/) (characteristic)
- [Grotesque & neo-grotesque](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/grotesque-and-neo-grotesque/) (characteristic)
- [Lowercase only](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/lowercase-only/) (characteristic)
- [Rotated & vertical setting](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/rotated-and-vertical-setting/) (occasional)
- [Wide letterspacing](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/wide-letterspacing/) (occasional)

### Colour
- [Limited spot colours](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/limited-spot-colours/) (defining)
- [Flat fields](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/flat-fields/) (defining)
- [Primary triad](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/primary-triad/) (characteristic)
- [Light ground](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/light-ground/) (characteristic)

### Form & shape
- [Non-representational](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/non-representational/) (defining)
- [Geometric primitives](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/geometric-primitives/) (characteristic)
- [Rectilinear](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/rectilinear/) (characteristic)
- [Optical pattern](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/optical-pattern/) (characteristic)

### Surface & texture
- [Flat](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/flat/) (defining)

### Ornament
- [Ornament-free](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/ornament-free/) (defining)

### Imagery
- [Typography only](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/typography-only/) (characteristic)
- [Pattern & repeat](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/pattern-and-repeat/) (characteristic)

### Medium & production
- [Offset printing](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/offset-printing/) (characteristic)
- [Architecture & signage](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/architecture-and-signage/) (occasional)

### Tone & intent
- [Rational & objective](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/rational-and-objective/) (defining)
- [Utopian & idealistic](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/utopian-and-idealistic/) (characteristic)
- [Playful & witty](https://stylogeny.com/design-choices/playful-and-witty/) (occasional)

Avoids: Floral & vegetal, Abundant decoration, Naturalistic depiction, Painterly illustration, Script, Ornamented display, Painterly brushwork

Palette: #f4f2ec, #121212, #e2361f, #f3c316, #1f4e9e

Typefaces: Futura (concrete poetry), Akzidenz-Grotesk, Helvetica, Univers

Known for: Antônio Maluf (poster for the 1st Bienal de São Paulo, 1951); Alexandre Wollner (4th Bienal de São Paulo poster, 1957; co-founder of Forminform, 1957, and ESDI, 1963); Geraldo de Barros (Grupo Ruptura; Forminform); Amílcar de Castro (Jornal do Brasil redesign, late 1950s); Lygia Pape (Piraquê biscuit packaging); Aloísio Magalhães (IV Centenário do Rio de Janeiro symbol, 1965; cruzeiro banknotes from 1970); Noigandres group: Augusto & Haroldo de Campos, Décio Pignatari (concrete poetry)

## Where it comes from, and what it’s close to

- Grew out of: [International Typographic Style](https://stylogeny.com/styles/swiss-international.md) (1950–1975)
- Influenced by: [HfG Ulm Systematic Design](https://stylogeny.com/styles/ulm-school.md) (1953–1968)
- Influenced by: [De Stijl](https://stylogeny.com/styles/de-stijl.md) (1917–1931)
- Alike in its design choices: [Total Design & Dutch Functionalism](https://stylogeny.com/styles/dutch-total-design.md) (1963–1990), 81% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Zagreb Modernist Graphics (EXAT 51 to Teatar &TD)](https://stylogeny.com/styles/zagreb-modernist-graphics.md) (1951–1975), 80% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Di Tella Graphic Design (Instituto Torcuato Di Tella)](https://stylogeny.com/styles/di-tella-graphics.md) (1960–1970), 69% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Milanese Industrial Modernism (Olivetti, Pirelli, Studio Boggeri)](https://stylogeny.com/styles/milanese-industrial-modernism.md) (1933–1975), 69% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Neo-Swiss Revival](https://stylogeny.com/styles/swiss-revival.md) (2005–present), 68% alike
- Alike in its design choices: [Out-of-Square Hangul Typography](https://stylogeny.com/styles/out-of-square-hangul.md) (1985–present), 67% alike

## Real works

- [Poster for the First Bienal de São Paulo](https://www.moma.org/collection/works/7587): Antônio Maluf, 1951, The Museum of Modern Art, New York (576.1951)
- [IV Bienal – Museu de Arte Moderna São Paulo – Brasil – Parque Ibirapuera – Sob o patrocínio da Prefeitura Municipal de São Paulo](https://www.emuseum.ch/en/objects/256235): Alexandre Wollner, 1957, Museum für Gestaltung Zürich, Poster Collection (08-0078)
- [The Third Biennal at the Museum of Modern Art, São Paulo](https://www.moma.org/collection/works/5581): Alexandre Wollner, 1955, The Museum of Modern Art, New York (184.1955)
- [VII bienal de São Paulo](https://www.emuseum.ch/en/objects/62343): Almir Mavignier, 1963, Museum für Gestaltung Zürich, Poster Collection (19-0406)

## Sources

- MoMA, Antonio Maluf, Poster for the First Bienal de São Paulo, 1951 (https://www.moma.org/collection/works/7587)
- Alexandre Wollner, Design visual 50 anos (2003)
- Revista Pesquisa FAPESP on Alexandre Wollner (https://revistapesquisa.fapesp.br/es/un-puente-al-mundo/)

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From Stylogeny (https://stylogeny.com/), an atlas of graphic-design styles by Van Riel Online Services. How it is made: https://stylogeny.com/about/. Cite as: Stylogeny, “Brazilian Concrete Design”, https://stylogeny.com/styles/brazilian-concrete/