Review: Isay Weinfeld by Shonquis Moreno
Get lost in the pages of a good book—it’s the soul of any room.
Known for his stunning contemporary residences, hotels, restaurants and commercial, cultural and public projects, Brazilian architect Isay Weinfeld has earned accolades both from colleagues and clients throughout his 40-year career. This beautiful new volume celebrates his ability to embrace tropical Brazilian landscapes and key modernist design tenets to create singular masterpieces.
Beginning with two excellent introductory essays by Shonquis Moreno and Raul Juste Lores, the volume’s 32o pages feature lush, full colour photography that brings Weinfeld’s architectural masterpieces to life. Each project is given a thoughtful, considered description, avoiding the typical trap of being a mere sketch of technical details. Highlights include: Edifício Mirá – ‘flats that follow the sun’; Livraria da Vila, with its huge pivoting bookshelves; Bar Número; and Fasano Las Piedras, a Bond-film-like hotel on the rocks in Uruguay.
But what strikes the reader the most are his residential projects, including Casa Cubo, Casa Marrom, and Casa Iporanga with its Middle Eastern screens. The projects’ inimitable luxury casts a spell on even the most jaded architect or designer, thanks to an ability to conjure the imagination whilst maintaining a firm sense of place. Ideal for any library dedicated to the arts of travel and design.
By Shonquis Moreno
Gestalten
The Latest
Product Design – id50 2026
We honor these product designers as part of the id50.
The Debuts at the id50 2026
Here are the debuts of the id50 2026.
Visionaries of the id50 2026
Take a look at the visionaries from our id50 2026
Global Firms – id50 2026
Meet the global firms with local presence that form a part of this year's id50
The Gaggenau Minimalistic Series. Two lines, one circle: a statement.
Sleek and clean, the Minimalistic series applies restraint in its design.
Meet the id50 2026
This year, we celebrate the interior designers, architects and product designers from the region – from emerging talent to the visionaries and global firms with local presence. We uncover their latest projects and what drew them to the profession.
Read ‘The Power Issue’ – Note from the editor
Read identity magazine's July-August 2026 edition on ISSUU or grab your copy
Häcker UAE on the discipline of designing a kitchen that asks for nothing
The German kitchen studio discusses why restraint, not statement, is the harder thing to achieve and what that means for the architects and designers it works with.
id most wanted – June 2026
Where There is Uns by Joud Malhas and Rachel Antoun
100 Years and Counting
Bang & Olufsen was founded in a farmhouse in Struer, Denmark, where Peter Bang and Svend Olufsen were united by a singular belief: that technology should be as beautiful as it is functional
A Quiet Respite at Nobu Toronto
Inspired by a Japanese ryokan, Studio Munge completes Canada’s first Nobu hotel
Ebb and Flow
Set a stone’s throw away from Hyde Park, the Six Senses London has wellness at its heart