The Portuguese furniture and cork industries will soon be involved in a new project in Brazil at the hands of the prestigious Brazilian designers, Fernando and Humberto Campana, who have been invited to take part in the programme of Experimenta Portugal. The 2018 edition, dedicated to the theme of Art & Culture, maintains a firm commitment to the creative affinities between Portuguese and Brazilians and to a spirit of mutual rediscovery.
Building on the success of the previous three editions, the initiative is organized by the Consulate General of Portugal in São Paulo and this year includes a partnership of Corticeira Amorim, the furniture company, Epoca, and the European Capital of Furniture brand, promoted by Paços de Ferreira Municipal Council.
In the framework of this project, the Irmãos Campana studio was challenged to reinvent and transform classic noble materials from Portugal. They chose Portuguese furniture and cork, although they had never previously used these materials in their works, which inspired tremendous curiosity.
"Travelling to Portugal connected me with my roots because, until now, it was a distant country for me. The experience from the trip was surprising, because it made me far more aware of my Portuguese heritage ", revealed Humberto Campana. "We’ve always been fascinated by cork, not only because it is an ecological material but because of its lightness. Cork’s texture, variety of applications and insulation properties enrich the possibilities of using this material, in order to express new concepts and gestures", he added.
The project began with a visit by Humberto Campana to Portugal, involving meetings with representatives of the Portuguese cork industry - Corticeira Amorim - and of the furniture industry - Epoca, in partnership with the Municipality of Paços de Ferreira.
The Mayor of Paços de Ferreira, Humberto Brito, considered that the project also constitutes a milestone for Paços de Ferreira Municipal Council, considered to be one of Europe’s biggest furniture industry clusters, which is increasingly focused on international growth, with 5,000 companies whose annual turnover exceeds €1 billion. He explained: "The studio’s visit to the municipality and the partnership with Corticeira Amorim, the world’s leading cork company and Portugal’s most internationally orientated company, in order to pioneer a project of international promotion of the furniture industry based in the European Capital of Furniture, is an opportunity for internationalization of the Municipality and its companies.”
Cristina Amorim, Director of Corticeira Amorim added: "It’s a great privilege for Corticeira Amorim to be able to work with Irmãos Campana on their first project using cork. We have a longstanding appreciation of the work and creativity of what we consider to be one of the world’s leading design studios. "
This partnership will culminate in the presentation of a special project, in São Paulo, in June, in the framework of the Programme in tribute to the Day of Portugal.
About Experimenta Portugal'18:
In its fourth edition, Experimenta Portugal will offer an extensive calendar of events during May and June 2018, involving a wide array of different artistic, musical and cultural creations and expressions, in different spaces and iconic cultural venues in the city of São Paulo, illustrating the unique current moment of connection and collaboration between São Paulo / Brazil and Portugal.
Picture: Campana Studio. © Fernando Laszlo
