Cobogó
Recife, 1929. Three engineers, Amadeu Oliveira Coimbra, Ernest August Boeckmann and Antônio de Góis, are on their way to the patent office to protect their new innovation – a ‘hollow structural element’. Somewhere between a brick and a tile, these ‘structural elements’ would go on to become one of the iconic elements of Brazilian Modernist architecture.
The only problem was the name – what were they going to call these things? They all wanted some credit for the innovation, but somehow the Coimbra-Boeckmann-Góis Brick didn’t sound like it was going to catch on. Instead they took the first 2 letters of each of their surnames and christened their hollow bricks Cobogó.
A few years later, Cobogó was used to cover the entire façade of the huge Caixa D’água building in Olinda.
The Caixa D’água De Olinda. Photo by Manuka Oliveira.
Originally made from concrete, Cobogó was later made in ceramic and other materials. The bricks serve several purposes that are particularly important in Brazil – they provide shade, light and ventilation as well as being cheap to make. But as well as the practical benefits, they also allowed architects and designers to express their modernist creativity. The results are often spectacular.
Although the spiritual home of Cobogó is Recife, I have been keeping an eye out for some examples here in Rio. A few weeks I stumbled on the jackpot! On the side of Parque Eduardo Guinle in Laranjeiras, there is a huge building which is completely covered in the stuff.
And although this style is approaching its centenary, it is still in popular use today. Take a look at this stunning ‘Cobogó House’ that was completed a few years ago in São Paulo.
I’m sure Messrs Coimbra, Boeckmann and Góis would approve.
For more examples, check out this Google Image Search and this Pinterest page.
I´d lean toward using a more discrete color when employing those things since the repetition of pattern is already providing alot of visual information. The red wall you focused on seems a bit too overwhelming for me (or challenging as you´d say). The white one is much nicer; yet would be too much of it were red or any other striking and saturated color methinks.
Oh, don´t let the aeasthetically focused comment above fool you: I am an one hundred percent Carolina Reaper kinda hombreman (call me ladies). Now excuse as it is Saturday hence feijoada, soccer and trash talk beckons.
Glad you reasserted your alpha maleness there Gritty – you had me worried for a moment ;)
Off topic: are you familiar with this?
https://www.facebook.com/VamoscolorirGruposigla?ref=profile
Wow! That thing looks great! Thanks, I hadn’t seen that.
around here they just use it as trim (and I had no idea that it has a specific name). I love the idea of using it to make an entire wall around a traditional glass window! gorgeous!
It’s a really nice effect isn’t it? It was cool to discover such a massive example practically on my doorstep :)