Isaac Julien: Lina Bo Bardi—A Marvellous Entanglement

Isaac Julien’s immersive multichannel film installation Lina Bo Bardi—A Marvellous Entanglement (2019) offers a poetic portrait of the leading architect of Brazilian modernism, Lina Bo Bardi (1914–1992). The nine-screen installation envisioned for the Yale Architecture Gallery ignites a conversation between Bo Bardi’s landmark buildings in Brazil and Paul Rudolph’s Brutalist design for the Yale School of Architecture (1963). Unfolding in a nonlinear narrative, Julien’s film explores Bo Bardi’s life, work, and legacy, exemplifying her remark that “time is not linear, it is a marvellous entanglement.”

In Julien’s intimate portrayal, Bo Bardi’s personal history is intertwined with the enduring life of the buildings she designed, which are now embedded in the cultural and social fabric of Brazil. Much like Bo Bardi’s expressive architecture, Julien’s film provides space for a wide range of creative practice, including performances by the Academy Award–nominated actor Fernanda Montenegro and her daughter, the Cannes-laureate actor Fernanda Torres; original dance choreographed by Zebrinha and performed by the Balé Folclórico da Bahia; and a commissioned performance by the art collective Araká. Bo Bardi’s individual story is entangled within a cultural ecosystem that celebrates the vibrancy of the arts in Brazil.