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Discover the trajectory and biography of Diógenes Rebouças, a notable Bahian architect. Explore his major works and his legacy in regional architecture.
Diógenes Rebouças was, undeniably, the most renowned and influential architect in Bahia between the late 1940s and early 1960s.
Biography of Diogenes Rebouças
Diógenes de Almeida Rebouças (Diógenes Rebouças) was born in 1914 on a farm in the municipality of Amargosa, Bahia. At the age of four, he moved with his family to Itabuna, where his parents owned rural properties.
Between 1930 and 1933, he studied Agricultural Engineering at the Agricultural School of Bahia, in São Bento das Lajes. He then returned to Itabuna, where he worked as a surveyor while also helping to manage the family farms.
Biografia e Obras de Diógenes Rebouças
Through his contacts with engineers he met as a surveyor, Rebouças began to develop architectural projects, becoming one of the most productive designers in the city during the 1930s. The most important project of this early phase was the Cathedral of São José in Itabuna.
In 1936, he moved permanently to Salvador and resumed his courses in architecture, drawing, and painting at the School of Fine Arts of Bahia, completing the Drawing and Painting course in 1937.
In 1941, at the invitation of engineer Mário Leal Ferreira, he provided input on the landscaping around the stadium being built near the Dique do Tororó. Rebouças proposed an alternative plan that placed the stadium on the hillside of Nazaré and opened up a view to the Dique, which was accepted by Governor Landulfo Alves. The Fonte Nova Stadium was inaugurated ten years later.
From 1943 onward, with the establishment of the EPUCS (Office of the Urban Planning Plan of Salvador), Rebouças coordinated the landscaping department. After the death of Mário Leal Ferreira in 1947, he took over as director of EPUCS, designing projects that transformed Salvador’s landscape, such as Avenida Centenário, the State Penitentiary, the Hotel da Bahia, the Fish Market at Porto da Barra, and new pavilions at the Santa Terezinha Sanatorium Park.
He also designed projects for the interior of Bahia, such as the hospital and hotel in Paulo Afonso and several schools based on the pedagogy of Anísio Teixeira. His work culminated in the Carneiro Ribeiro Educational Center in Salvador, which became a national and international reference for school architecture.
In 1952, Rebouças earned the title of architect from the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) and began teaching. Some of his key projects from this phase include Avenida Contorno, the headquarters of TV Itapoã, the Polytechnic School, and the Passenger Maritime Terminal.
In the 1960s, his production slowed, but his influence remained unmatched. He designed the UFBA Faculty of Architecture and expanded the Fonte Nova Sports Complex.
In 1972, Rebouças closed his office and focused on teaching, consulting, and participating in the State Council of Culture. In the 1980s, as a consultant for IPHAN, he developed studies for protected historical monuments in Bahia and designed a mass transit project for downtown Salvador.
Rebouças retired from UFBA in 1984 and passed away in 1994. He was Bahia’s most renowned architect between the 1940s and 1960s and played a key role in shaping Salvador’s landscape and training new generations of architects.
Paintings by Diógenes Rebouças: “Salvador da Bahia de Todos os Santos in the 19th Century”
Seeking to restore the image of the city from its pre-reform period, Rebouças recreated, through paintings, the main public spaces of Salvador that were either significantly altered or entirely lost to urban reforms. These included sites like the Farol da Barra, which at the time was sparsely or not yet developed.
Discover the trajectory and biography of Diógenes Rebouças, a notable Bahian architect. Explore his major works and his legacy in regional architecture.
Diógenes Rebouças was, undeniably, the most renowned and influential architect in Bahia between the late 1940s and early 1960s.
Biography of Diogenes Rebouças
Diógenes de Almeida Rebouças (Diógenes Rebouças) was born in 1914 on a farm in the municipality of Amargosa, Bahia. At the age of four, he moved with his family to Itabuna, where his parents owned rural properties.
Between 1930 and 1933, he studied Agricultural Engineering at the Agricultural School of Bahia, in São Bento das Lajes. He then returned to Itabuna, where he worked as a surveyor while also helping to manage the family farms.
Biografia e Obras de Diógenes Rebouças
Through his contacts with engineers he met as a surveyor, Rebouças began to develop architectural projects, becoming one of the most productive designers in the city during the 1930s. The most important project of this early phase was the Cathedral of São José in Itabuna.
In 1936, he moved permanently to Salvador and resumed his courses in architecture, drawing, and painting at the School of Fine Arts of Bahia, completing the Drawing and Painting course in 1937.
In 1941, at the invitation of engineer Mário Leal Ferreira, he provided input on the landscaping around the stadium being built near the Dique do Tororó. Rebouças proposed an alternative plan that placed the stadium on the hillside of Nazaré and opened up a view to the Dique, which was accepted by Governor Landulfo Alves. The Fonte Nova Stadium was inaugurated ten years later.
From 1943 onward, with the establishment of the EPUCS (Office of the Urban Planning Plan of Salvador), Rebouças coordinated the landscaping department. After the death of Mário Leal Ferreira in 1947, he took over as director of EPUCS, designing projects that transformed Salvador’s landscape, such as Avenida Centenário, the State Penitentiary, the Hotel da Bahia, the Fish Market at Porto da Barra, and new pavilions at the Santa Terezinha Sanatorium Park.
He also designed projects for the interior of Bahia, such as the hospital and hotel in Paulo Afonso and several schools based on the pedagogy of Anísio Teixeira. His work culminated in the Carneiro Ribeiro Educational Center in Salvador, which became a national and international reference for school architecture.
In 1952, Rebouças earned the title of architect from the Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) and began teaching. Some of his key projects from this phase include Avenida Contorno, the headquarters of TV Itapoã, the Polytechnic School, and the Passenger Maritime Terminal.
In the 1960s, his production slowed, but his influence remained unmatched. He designed the UFBA Faculty of Architecture and expanded the Fonte Nova Sports Complex.
In 1972, Rebouças closed his office and focused on teaching, consulting, and participating in the State Council of Culture. In the 1980s, as a consultant for IPHAN, he developed studies for protected historical monuments in Bahia and designed a mass transit project for downtown Salvador.
Rebouças retired from UFBA in 1984 and passed away in 1994. He was Bahia’s most renowned architect between the 1940s and 1960s and played a key role in shaping Salvador’s landscape and training new generations of architects.
Paintings by Diógenes Rebouças: “Salvador da Bahia de Todos os Santos in the 19th Century”
Seeking to restore the image of the city from its pre-reform period, Rebouças recreated, through paintings, the main public spaces of Salvador that were either significantly altered or entirely lost to urban reforms. These included sites like the Farol da Barra, which at the time was sparsely or not yet developed.
