After starting his career by apprenticing then collaborating with Lucio Costa, Oscar Niemeyer made his mark with this modernization project. The highlight is the Church of St. Francis of Assisi, a revolutionary modernist touchstone with a parabolic roof and polychromatic tiles that was such an unexpected departure from previous chapel designs, one politician suggested demolishing it. Photo 2 of 11 in Design Icon: 10 Buildings by Oscar Niemeyer

Design Icon: 10 Buildings by Oscar Niemeyer

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After starting his career by apprenticing then collaborating with Brazilian architect and urban planner Lúcio Costa, Oscar Niemeyer made his mark with the visionary garden city project in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The highlight is the Church of St. Francis of Assisi, a revolutionary modernist touchstone with a parabolic roof and polychromatic tiles that was such an unexpected departure from previous chapel designs, one politician suggested demolishing it.