RIMOWA EXPLORES SÃO PAULO’S BRUTALIST HERITAGE THROUGH RESIDÊNCIA JOÃO MARINO

RIMOWA’s ongoing exploration of remarkable architecture brings the German luggage house to São Paulo, focusing on Residência João Marino, a private residence designed in 1969 by architects Sylvio Sawaya and Edmilson Tinoco Júnior. The project occupies an important place within the architectural landscape of São Paulo, a city whose rapid industrial and urban development helped foster one of Brazil’s most distinctive modernist movements.

Known as Paulista Brutalism, the architectural school that emerged in São Paulo during the mid-20th century was characterised by a direct approach to structure and materials. Exposed concrete was frequently left visible rather than concealed, while large structural spans, open interiors and strong relationships between built form and landscape became recurring elements.

The movement developed differently from the modernist architecture associated with Rio de Janeiro. While Rio became internationally recognised for lighter forms and sweeping curves, architects working in São Paulo often embraced the weight and physical presence of concrete. The resulting buildings could appear austere, but their apparent simplicity frequently concealed sophisticated structural solutions.

Residência João Marino translates these ideas into a domestic setting. Commissioned by engineer and businessman João Marino, the house was conceived not only as a family residence but also as an opportunity to explore structural possibilities. Its design reflects an interest in using engineering to alter the relationship between a building and the ground on which it stands.

The approximately 600-square-metre residence is supported by only six structural columns. This arrangement allows much of the house to extend above the site, creating a pronounced sense of suspension. One of the most distinctive spaces is the principal living area, which projects over the swimming pool. What appears visually light is therefore the result of carefully calculated structural organisation.

The architectural experience continues through the relationship between the interior and the garden. The original plan remains substantially intact, with the central living area opening towards the landscape. Rather than treating the garden as a separate feature, the design incorporates it into the movement of the house, creating a sequence between enclosed and open spaces.

More than five decades after its completion, Residência João Marino has acquired a different cultural role. The property is protected by CONDEPHAAT, São Paulo’s state heritage authority, recognising its architectural significance while allowing the building to continue evolving.

Its transition from a private family residence towards a cultural landmark illustrates an important quality of architectural heritage: preservation does not necessarily mean freezing a building in time. A structure can retain its original principles while acquiring new meanings through changing circumstances and uses.

That idea has particular resonance with RIMOWA’s own design history. Founded in Cologne, Germany, in 1898 by Paul Morszeck, the company began as a saddlery workshop before expanding into luggage for professional travellers. Its early cases were made from materials including leather-coated plywood and cardboard. Over the following decades, the company developed its expertise in lightweight and durable construction, introducing its first aluminium suitcase in 1937 and its recognisable grooves in 1950.

RIMOWA’s heritage has therefore been shaped by an interest in engineering as much as by appearance. Its luggage has evolved in response to changing forms of travel, while certain design principles have remained recognisable across generations. The company describes its history as one rooted in craftsmanship and innovation, with Cologne remaining central to its identity.

The connection between RIMOWA and Residência João Marino is consequently less about superficial visual similarity than a shared interest in how design responds to practical demands. In the São Paulo residence, structural engineering determines the building’s proportions and relationship with the site. In RIMOWA’s work, material choices and construction methods have similarly been developed around the realities of movement and use.

This architectural story also places São Paulo within a broader conversation about the preservation of modernist buildings. The city’s Brutalist architecture has increasingly attracted international attention for its ability to combine large-scale structural thinking with intimate domestic spaces. Residência João Marino demonstrates how those ambitions could be translated into a home without reducing architecture to a purely functional exercise.

The building’s six-column structure is particularly revealing. By concentrating structural support into a small number of points, the architects were able to create open areas that would have been difficult to achieve through more conventional construction. The result is an architecture in which engineering is not hidden behind decoration; it becomes part of the building’s visual character.

The same principle extends to the residence’s use of concrete. Rather than treating the material as something requiring embellishment, the architecture allows its physical qualities to remain evident. Surface, mass and structure contribute directly to the atmosphere of the house.

For RIMOWA, the project forms part of a wider series examining architecture and design across different cities and cultures. Its focus on Residência João Marino is especially appropriate in São Paulo, where architecture has long served as a testing ground for ideas about modern living, construction and the relationship between the individual home and its surroundings.

The city itself provides an important backdrop. São Paulo’s transformation during the 20th century was closely linked to industrialisation and economic growth, creating the conditions for a generation of architects to experiment with new spatial and structural possibilities. Paulista Brutalism emerged from that environment, developing a language that was strongly connected to concrete, construction and the realities of the city.

Residência João Marino remains compelling because its architectural ambitions are legible in the experience of the building. The elevated volume, open living spaces and connection to the garden are not simply stylistic gestures. They originate in a structural concept that determines how the residence occupies its site.

For visitors encountering the project through RIMOWA’s architectural series, the house offers another perspective on the relationship between design and longevity. Its continued relevance does not depend on remaining untouched. Instead, its value lies in the clarity of the original idea and the capacity of the building to carry that idea into another era.

RIMOWA’s presence in the United Arab Emirates currently includes its Dubai Mall boutique in Fashion Avenue, Ground Floor, Unit GF-038. The official store offers services including in-store appointments, repairs, customisation and luggage-tag hot stamping.

There is an understated logic to choosing Residência João Marino as the latest subject of this architectural series. Both the house and the objects RIMOWA creates demonstrate how technical decisions can become part of a design language rather than being concealed from view. In São Paulo, concrete and structural engineering shaped a home that has endured beyond its original purpose. Its continued life suggests that the most lasting forms of design are often those in which function, material and imagination are allowed to remain inseparable.