Reinach Mendonça Arquitetos Associados

Henrique Reinach and Mauricio Mendonça started Reinach Mendonça Arquitetos Associados in 1987. The architecture developed by Henrique and Mauricio always have had, as guidelines, the respect of form, light and comfort. They believe that adequate control between full and empty results in effective use of sunlight, as well as in the correct temperature control. With a contemporary language, great attention is given to circulation and exterior openings, creating pleasurable spaces to see, be and walk through. During the first 15 years, the firm has managed and built a great deal of its own projects, thus obtaining real mastery on the worksite and in regards to building costs. At the same time, it has designed fixed and loose furniture that complement its architecture. They won first place in the 1993 Young Architects Prize – IAB/SP in the category “completed buildings” and, in the same year, they were the highlights of the Second São Paulo International Architecture Biennale and International Biennial of Quito. In the years 1996, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2008 they received honorable mention awards from AsBEA (Brazilian Association of Architecture Firms) and IAB/SP (Institute of Architects of Brazil) for their completed buildings. In 1999, the duo took part in the exhibition Brazil Still Builds of the Architectural Association, in London. In 2005 and 2009, they delivered a lecture at the Buenos Aires Biennial and received, in 2006, the first prize at the Brasília Biennale of Architecture. Works by the firm have been published in numerous national magazines. International publications such as Abitare-Italy, Escala-Colombia, Architectural Digest-Italy and Nox-Spain have also highlighted them abroad. They made the covers for the books “Private Rio”, by Publisher Rizzoli, NY and “Glass Houses”, by Monsa, Spain. One Design was awarded in 1999 and was also published in the AWA – Award Winning International Architecture Yearbook. In 2008, the publication “1000x Architecture of the Americas”, Publisher Braun, Germany, presented three of the firm’s designs amongst the 1000 most recent noteworthy designs in the Americas. Since 2001, the firm has its headquarters located in a design awarded by IAB/SP in 2002 and which was nominated, in 2003 as, “OFFICE OF THE YEAR – national prominence” by the AsBEA annual awards.