5th Avenue Cinema and Littman & White Galleries Present: Landscape Film, Roberto Burle Marx

Dir. João Vargas Penna (2018); Brazil, Germany, UK; Portuguese; 74 min

This documentary portrays the life and work of Roberto Burle Marx (1909–1994), exploring his passion for Brazil’s native flora and the many species he discovered on his research trips. By organizing native plants in accordance with the aesthetic principles of Cubism and abstractionism, Burle Marx pioneered a new form of tropical landscaping. The film weaves his ideas and memories into sensory landscapes, tracing the painter, sculptor, and landscaper’s trajectory through his iconic squares and gardens in cities such as São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasília, and Recife; each marked by flowing, wavy forms shaped from Brazil’s rich natural environment.