Dome

Side view of concrete vault wall; In 1940 Niemeyer was commissioned by Juscelino Kubitschek, then Prefect of Belo Horizonte, the state capital of Minas Gerais, to design a series of buildings around an artificial lake at Pampulha, a suburb of the city. These buildings (1942-1947), which included a church dedicated to St. Francis of Assisi, a casino, restaurant, dance hall and yacht club, brought him international fame. The church is four undulating concrete parabolas which roof over a T-shaped plan. Vertical side walls are faced with painted tile mural. The outer screen wall on the north side is finished with a azulejo tiled mural depicting scenes from the life of St. Francis by Cândido Portinari. With its slender tower that tapers towards its base like a chair-leg, this building is one of the most reproduced images of 20th-century architecture. Source: Grove Art Online; http://www.oxfordartonline.com/ (accessed 7/14/2010)