No passing fad: Carlos Motta celebrates 40 years of design at Espasso NY

A new show at New York City's Espasso gallery
This week, Brazilian designer Carlos Motta celebrates his atelier's 40th anniversary with a new show at New York City's Espasso gallery. He chose to focus his design practice on sustainability and environmental conservation back in the 1970s and has since become the go-to name for statuesque, unadorned furniture that celebrates the natural quality of its materials.
(Image credit: Elisseu Cavalcante)

Working with reclaimed materials in the design world can often be written off as a passing fad, especially since it's become a fashionable calling card for style-oriented hotels, restaurants and bars. Yet way before the trend erupted, the Brazilian designer Carlos Motta chose to focus his design practice on sustainability and environmental conservation back in the 1970s. Motta, who began making objects from pieces of driftwood found while surfing, has since become the go-to name for statuesque, unadorned furniture that celebrates the natural quality of its materials.

This week, the ever-youthful Motta celebrates his eponymous atelier’s 40th anniversary with a retrospective exhibition hosted at the Brazilian design gallery Espasso in New York City. Armed with over 50 furniture pieces, including 11 new creations that will be revealed for the first time, Motta takes stock of the diverse body of work he has produced over the course of his career.

Ranging from bespoke creations and limited edition designs, to work created in collaboration with the larger furniture manufacturers on display, the retrospective presents Motta’s unique place in the design world and highlights his creative process. An avid surfer, naturalist, yoga practitioner and craftsman, his oeuvre brings all of these facets together in physical form.

‘Over the years, I have strived to create works that are honest and speak to my philosophy of designing pieces that are simple, respectful and long-lasting,’ he says. ‘This exhibition is extremely exciting for me because it allows visitors to see who I am as a designer by viewing a broad selection of my pieces at once.’

To complement the exhibition, Motta has also transformed Espasso’s gallery space with photographs, sketches, hand-written notes and other ephemera to bring his process to life.

The 11 new pieces are particularly exciting – personal, almost fantastical creations that the designer developed over the last 13 months. From ‘Pinda’, an ergonomic chair that’s smooth on one side and teeming with spikes likes its namesake fish on the other, to the rotating ‘Sergio’ armchair – a loving tribute to the Brazilian design icon Sergio Rodrigues, a close friend of Motta’s – the pieces are joyful, liberated and beautifully realised in lustrous reclaimed woods, native to Brazil.

‘It’s very hard for myself to end up with a group of pieces and feel as satisfied as I do now. It was a big pleasure to design and produce these pieces because I didn’t have a client or anybody asking for this,’ he explains. 'It was something very personal; from my mind and my ideas, something that I’ve been doing for a long time. I was so free to design and build, always keeping the same basic concept of reclaimed wood and reusing materials.’

Carlos Motta celebrates 40 years of design at Espasso NY

Armed with over 50 furniture pieces, including 11 new creations that will be revealed for the first time, Motta takes stock of the diverse body of work he has produced over the course of his career.

(Image credit: Elisseu Cavalcante)

No passing fad: Carlos Motta celebrates 40 years of design at Espasso NY

To complement the exhibition, Motta has also transformed Espasso’s gallery space with photographs, sketches, hand-written notes and other ephemera to bring his process to life.

(Image credit: Elisseu Cavalcante)

Carlos Motta Caranguejeira

The 11 new pieces are particularly exciting – personal, almost fantastical creations that the designer developed over the last 13 months. Pictured: 'Caranguejeira' coffee table, 2015; reclaimed peroba rosa wood, iron.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Carcara

'Carcará' table lamp, 2015; reclaimed conduru wood base, amendoim wood shade, oxidised iron, lapidated glass and/or topaz shade details.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Conduru

'Conduru' low table, 2015; reclaimed conduru wood, oxidised iron.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Ferrao

'Ferrão' dining table, 2015; reclaimed peroba rosa wood, reclaimed aroeira wood, oxidised iron.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Guara Armchair

'Guará' armchair, 2015; reclaimed peroba rosa wood, iron, leather upholstery.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Koguma Lamp

'Koguma' floor lamp, 2015; reclaimed peroba rosa wood stem, reclaimed mango wood shade, iron, bronze screen.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Mario De Andrade

'Mario de Andrade' sofa, 2014; reclaimed peroba rosa wood, canvas truck tarp upholstery.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Nave Floor Lamp Side Table

'Nave' floor lamp / side table, 2015; reclaimed peroba rosa and amendoim woods, oxidised iron, lamp shade made of re-utilised paper coffee filters.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Pinda Chair

'Pindá' chair, 2014'; reclaimed perobinha do campo wood.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Sergio Swivel Chair

'Sergio' swivel chair, 2014; reclaimed peroba rosa wood, iron, suede upholstery.

(Image credit: Espasso)

Carlos Motta Tinga

'Tinga' chair, 2015; reclaimed peroba rosa wood, iron, molded laminated wood backrest, leather upholstery.

(Image credit: Espasso)

INFORMATION

’Atelier Carlos Motta: 40 Years’ is on view until 12 October

ADDRESS

Espasso New York
38 N Moore Street
New York, NY 10013

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Pei-Ru Keh is a former US Editor at Wallpaper*. Born and raised in Singapore, she has been a New Yorker since 2013. Pei-Ru held various titles at Wallpaper* between 2007 and 2023. She reports on design, tech, art, architecture, fashion, beauty and lifestyle happenings in the United States, both in print and digitally. Pei-Ru took a key role in championing diversity and representation within Wallpaper's content pillars, actively seeking out stories that reflect a wide range of perspectives. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two children, and is currently learning how to drive.