The airplane in the serrado…… Brasilia

Is it a cross, or an angel, or a butterfly? Well when you look at the street map of Brasilia 9 out of 10 people see an airplane……

In the fifties the Brazilian president Juscelino Kubitschek had a plan to build a new city in the serrado (savanna). Rio de Janeiro was becoming too crowded and developing the inland was strategically a good plan. So a contest was held and the city planner Lucio Costa won. The now famous Oscar Niemeyer became leading architect.  On the 21^st of April 1960 the new capital of Brazil was inaugurated. The main government organizations were already moved to Brasilia.

Parliament of Brazil

The large green axis (from the TV tower looking to the Parliament). In the middle the bus/metro station.

The green axis (left the sector Hotels North / right Hotels South)

The city is built around two green axes. Along these axes are the Sectors. There is a Bank Sector, a Hotel Sector, Embassy Sector, Cultural Sector, Sectors to live,  etc. Most sectors have a North (north side of the vertical axis) and a South (other side). So you can be in Hotels North or Banks South. To make it difficult…. There are no street names! Within the sectors the addresses are indicated by bloc and apartment.

Praça dos Tres Poderes (picture is deformed a bit, but it gives a good impression of the space).

The nose of the plane is the “Praça dos Tres Poderes” (the Square of the Three Powers). On this square are the Parliament, the High Court and the presidential working palace; the “Palacio do Planalto”.

Palacio do Planalto (presidential working palace)

The High Court

The Parliament (To the right the "bowl"of the Congress / to the left the "dome" of the Senate)

Going up the green axis there is on the right side of the Parliament the Ministry of Justice, with its waterfalls, and on the left side the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Further up are the other ministries in monotonous office blocs.

Ministry of Justice

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The other ministries (north)

In the middle of the axes is the bus station and the metro station. Between the ministries and the bus station are the Cathedral and the Museum. Obvious Niemeyer…..  flowing forms and white concrete.

Parliament, ministries (south), Cathedral, museum

Part of the museum

The Cathedral (there are construction works going on.... )

The city has a place on the World Heritage list. This exceptional plane is based in the serrado for ever ….. 

More about the architecture of Oscar Niemeyer in: An igloo in the sunshine