Jorge Zalszupin folding desk by L’Atelier Brazil 1959

Jorge Zalszupin

Poland 1922 – Brazil 2020
Architect, designer

Folding desk designed by Jorge Zalszupin and manufactured by his own company L’Atelier, Brazil 1959. As Zalszupin gained more and more momentum with his practice during the early and mid-fifties, he started working with architect Oscar Niemeyer to do commissioned projects for the new capital of Brasilia, which was the perfect opportunity to implement his design language. These folding desks are part of a series of desks that belonged to ESAF – Escola de Administração Fazendária, or School of Farm Administration which was extinguished in January 2019 and incorporated into the Ministry of Economy. ESAF was incorporated into ENAP – National School of Public Administration, and in this process, it was decided to maintain more current furniture, already used by ENAP. The original labels are still on most of the desk tables. The entire desk is covered with Rosewood patchwork veneer and has a centre slat wrapped in black leatherette. The slat provides stability when folded open and locked into place and also makes it possible to fold the desk easily when folded down. This patchwork finishing was the characteristic feature of Zalszupins work; the collage using several pieces of sheets of jacaranda wood, with different tones, in the composition of panels from the desk. This was an initiative for the rationalization and use of left-over scraps of wood available at the factory, allowing, at the same time a combination of their different colourings. Most desks have the original L’Atelier sticker on the underside of the tabletop.

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Provenance; School of Farm Administration, an organ of the Brazilian Ministry of Finance, Brasilia 1959