Letter: Father of Brasilia

Father of Brasilia

Sir: I read with interest Nonie Niesewand's judiciously balanced tribute to Lucio Costa (Obituary, 17 June) but there are four problems.

First, the satellite cities she mentions around Brasilia by no means sprang up in the 1990s. They were started, in the 1950s, by building workers as typical squatter housing for themselves. They needed services, of course: shops, bars, restaurants, clubs, cinemas and so on. These were rather scarce in Brasilia itself so residents, seeking a night out from the sterile city, would go to one of the satellites, where they could enjoy themselves.

Secondly whilst the first generation, uprooted from Rio, absolutely loathed the place their children, at least those now teaching planning at the university, think it is truly a model city.

Third, it was built as a city for automobiles but since Brazil has very little oil, they have to be run on "alcool" distilled, expensively, from sugar cane, so great use is made of public transport.

Fourth, and most controversial of all, who actually designed it? I was introduced to Costa early in 1969. He was still working at the ministry in Rio which he and others, including Niemeyer, had designed with Le Corbusier as consultant. I had been, the previous day, on a trip to Brasilia and found an English-speaking taxi-driver. After five minutes or so he suggested that, given my questions, I was probably an architect and gave me his card. The driver's name was Jeanneret and he claimed to have an architect cousin - none other than Charles Eduard: Le Corbusier himself! What is more he claimed that Brasilia was designed by Le Corbusier: that all Costa did was draw it.

So of course I asked Costa, an excessively modest man, and his response was: "Yes, that's right!"

Of course we shall never know. The ideas surely are Corbusean but whether he conceived the "butterfly" plan may be a rather different matter.

Professor GEOFFREY BROADBENT

Southsea, Hampshire