Roberto Burle Marx paints a tablecloth in his house in the 1980s.
Courtesy The Jewish Museum Roberto Burle Marx paints a tablecloth in his house in the 1980s.

Most people know Roberto Burle Marx as the designer of nearly 2,000 gardens worldwide that broke with the 19th century European tradition in favor of using native fauna and asymmetry. A monographic show at the Jewish Museum in New York City, "Roberto Burle Marx: Brazilian Modernist," offers nearly 140 examples of the designer’s work, celebrating both his landscapes as well as Burle Marx’s talents in painting, sculpture, theater design, textiles, and jewelry. On display until Sept. 18, the exhibition will then travel to Berlin before ending, appropriately, in Rio de Janeiro.

Mineral roof garden at Banco Safra headquarters in São Paulo
Courtesy The Jewish Museum Mineral roof garden at Banco Safra headquarters in São Paulo
Gouache painting of a design for a mineral roof garden at Banco Safra headquarters in São Paulo
Courtesy The Jewish Museum Gouache painting of a design for a mineral roof garden at Banco Safra headquarters in São Paulo
Gouache painting of a design for the garden of the Clemente Gomes residence, Fazenda Vargem Grande, Areias
Courtesy The Jewish Museum Gouache painting of a design for the garden of the Clemente Gomes residence, Fazenda Vargem Grande, Areias
Biscayne Boulevard in Miami
Courtesy The Jewish Museum Biscayne Boulevard in Miami
Exhibition at The Jewish Museum
David Heald Exhibition at The Jewish Museum

"Roberto Burle Marx: Brazilian Modernist" is open though Sept. 18 at the Jewish Museum in New York.