'Arquivo Brasilia' by Lina Kim and Michael Wesely

Inauguration day at the Congress Building
Inauguration day at the Congress Building
(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

Wallpaper* has had a long-standing love affair with Brazil. We've gone so far as to dedicate an entire issue to the country (June 2010).

Especially close to our heart is the capital Brasilia, a sprawling epic of ambition and architectural hubris that, as Mario Cesar Carvalho puts it, was built in the space of four years in the middle of nowhere.

Timely then that for the city's 50th anniversary, we are adding 'Arquivo Brasília' to our bookshelves. In compiling the largest iconographic survey ever undertaken about the city, authors Lina Kim and Michael Wesely combed public archives, sorting through 10,000 images that document Brasilia's construction - many in a perilous state of deterioration and discolouration - to end up with the final cut of 1,400 colour and black and white images.

As photographic records go, this is an important document that canvases the birth of a city (including President Juscelino Kubitschek's first expeditions to the site in 1956) through to the foundation works (and the pivotal construction of the city's cruciform axes) and the totemic 1960 inauguration.

As Guilherme Wisnik points out in his foreword, with 'Arquivo Brasilia', the city finally gains the documentary treatment it deserves.

The Eixo Rodoviàrio, one of Brasilia’s main highways on Inauguration day

The Eixo Rodoviàrio, one of Brasilia’s main highways on Inauguration day

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

Planalto Palace

Planalto Palace

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

The University of Brasilia under construction

The University of Brasilia under construction

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

Alvorada Palace, the President’s official residence

Alvorada Palace, the President’s official residence

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

Interior of the Cathedral Nossa Senhora Aparecida

Interior of the Cathedral Nossa Senhora Aparecida

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

The Esplanada dos Ministérios under construction

The Esplanada dos Ministérios under construction

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

The bus station in Brasilia

The bus station in Brasilia

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

Supermarket on W3 Avenue in Brasilia

Supermarket on W3 Avenue in Brasilia

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

The Cerrado - the vast tropical savannah that spreads across central Brazil

The Cerrado - the vast tropical savannah that spreads across central Brazil

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

The original Cidade Livre (Free Town) which was demolished in 1956 to make way for Brasilia

The original Cidade Livre (Free Town) which was demolished in 1956 to make way for Brasilia

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

Daily life in the Cidade Livre

Daily life in the Cidade Livre

(Image credit: © Lina Kim and Michael Wesely - foto Jesco von Puttkamer- Acervo PUC GO-IGPA)

Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.