He had been looking for some port from where he could sail and drop his ships. Over time he understood that what he was looking for was a specialized course in interior architecture.
The University of Brazil's National School of Architecture still operated, for the last year, at the building of the National School of Fine Arts, in Rio de Janeiro. To Sergio, everything was very pleasant in college, and he said it was a "very nice" period in his life. The only thing that bothered him was math. He could not "operate" properly in that subject and benefited from the patience of his renowned math professor, Júlio César de Melo e Sousa, known for the Malba Tahan heteronym, which was how he used to sign his books, including the famous The man who calculated. Sergio says Malba Tahan allowed him pass in math every year, but only barely.
Over time, Sergio started liking architecture. He was very fond of a professor who was very knowledgeable in art history, and Sergio was deeply interested in that subject. But he had been looking for some port from where he could sail and drop his ships. Over time he understood that what he was after was a specialized course in interior architecture. He was studying the early part of architecture and wanted to dive into decoration and the styles of all eras.
Therefore, his great interest at that time was in interior decoration. In fact, he was always interested in this, ever since he discovered the wonderful world of his uncle James' workshop, as a kid growing up at number 72, as he called his uncle's place. All of the furniture in it was European, and Sergio found it very interesting: lamps, armchairs, chairs, tables. At the workshop, which was in the backyard, uncle James repaired furniture. Sergio paid attention to the slots and made his wooden toys using joinery techniques that he learned from his uncle's woodworkers. He also liked to make arrangements.
His aunt Zita, uncle Pericles' wife, used to always ask him for help with her flower arrangements. "Boy, you have the hang of it!", she would say. And he would get excited about it.
Sergio then found out that the study of Interiors was part of the college's curriculum. However, it was not very explicit. "It was not complete, and I was dying to have it all." His gift and interest led him to look for a book or some other school that would teach him so he could go deeper into the Interior issue that fascinated him so much. He was a junior in college. It was no easy task. He did visit Singer Decorações, but when we got there he found that there was only a group of women working with sewing machines. Singer machines, of course. He sat there for a day, watching. He thought someone might explain styles and arrangements to him, but soon realized that was not what we wanted and left.
