NIEMEYER (SOARES FILHO), OSCAR

born Dec. 15, 1907, Rio de Janeiro Brazilian architect and early exponent of modern architecture in Latin America, particularly noted for his work on Braslia, the new capital of Brazil. Niemeyer studied architecture at the National School of Fine Arts, Rio de Janeiro. Shortly before his graduation in 1934, he entered the office of Lcio Costa, a leader of the modern movement in Brazilian architecture. He worked with Costa from 1937 to 1943 on the design for the Ministry of Education and Health building, considered by many to be the first modern architectural masterpiece in Brazil. Le Corbusier, the Swiss-born French architect, was a consultant on the building, which shows his influence. Niemeyer also worked with Costa on the designs for the Brazilian Pavilion for the New York World's Fair of 193940. The plan for Pampulha, a new suburb of Belo Horizonte, was Niemeyer's first major project on his own. The project, commissioned in 1941 by Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira, then mayor of Belo Horizonte, is notable for the free-flowing forms used in many of its buildings. Other commissions followed, and in 1947 Niemeyer represented Brazil in the planning of the United Nations buildings in New York City. Following his election to the presidency of Brazil in 1956, Kubitschek asked Niemeyer to design the new capital city of Braslia. Niemeyer agreed to design the government buildings but suggested a national competition for the master plan, a competition subsequently won by his mentor, Lcio Costa. Niemeyer served as chief architect for NOVA-CAP, the government building authority in Braslia, from 1956 to 1961. Among the Braslia buildings designed by Niemeyer are the President's Palace, the Braslia Palace Hotel, the presidential chapel, and the cathedral. In 1961 Niemeyer returned to private practice and lived in Paris and Israel. In 1966 he designed an urban area in Grasse, near Nice, Fr., and a building for the French Communist Party in Paris. From 1968 he lectured at the University of Rio de Janeiro. Niemeyer's other architectural projects included the Ministry of Defense building in Braslia in 1968 and the National Party Headquarters in Algiers in 1976. He was the recipient of many international architectural awards and received the Lenin Peace Prize in 1963.