Description

Designed in the 1950s by Carlo Hauner for Forma, this exceptional Brazilian rosewood bed formed part of an ambitious and highly cohesive bedroom suite — a rare example of fully integrated Brazilian Modern furniture design. Rather than conceiving furniture as isolated objects, Hauner developed the ensemble as an architectural environment for domestic life. The original program included the bed, vanity with stool, daybed, wall unit, and a telephone bench, unified by shared materials, proportions, and structural logic. Period documentation, as featured in the image, illustrates the suite installed as intended, reinforcing Hauner’s holistic approach to interior architecture.

Executed entirely in richly figured Brazilian rosewood (Jacarandá), the bed is composed of two sculptural platform bases supported by tapered cone legs, creating a sense of visual lightness despite the material’s density. The expansive headboard integrates a central woven cane panel flanked by floating shelves and built-in bedside compartments, balancing material warmth with functional clarity. The cane panel has been sensitively renewed, preserving the original scale, weave character, and visual rhythm of the design.

The bed corresponds to American Queen mattress standards, allowing it to accommodate a mattress approximately 60 inches wide by 80 inches long. To maintain the intended low modernist profile of the design, a mattress height of approximately 9–10 inches is recommended. This proportion allows the mattress to sit slightly recessed within the platform frame, preserving the architectural clarity and horizontal emphasis characteristic of Hauner’s work.

The piece retains the original Forma manufacture seal on the reverse, confirming authenticity and production provenance. Acquired from a modernist residence in Teresópolis, Brazil, the bed exemplifies Hauner’s Brazilian period: abundant rosewood, restrained detailing, and refined structural elegance.

As a surviving component of a complete and conceptually unified bedroom system, this work represents a rare and important example of Brazilian Modernism at its most ambitious and integrated.

Dimensions

Headrest: H 35" × W 134" × D 13"
Queen bed base: H 15" × W 83" × D 63"