Cândido Portinari
Encyclopedia
Candido Portinari was one of the most important Brazil
ian painters
and also a prominent and influential practitioner of the neo-realism
style in painting.
Born to Giovan Battista Portinari and Domenica Torquato, Italian
immigrants from Veneto, in a coffee
plantation near Brodowski
, in São Paulo
, Portinari studied at the Escola Nacional de Belas Artes
(ENBA) in Rio de Janeiro
. In 1928 he won a gold medal at the ENBA and a trip to Paris
where he stayed until 1930, when he returned to Brazil.
He joined the Brazilian Communist Party
and stood for senator
in 1947 but had to flee Brazil for Uruguay
due to the persecution of Communists by the dictatorship of General Eurico Gaspar Dutra( 1946 to 1951). He returned to Brazil in 1951 but suffered ill health during the last decade of his life and died in Rio de Janeiro
in 1962 of lead poisoning
from his paints.
His career coincided with and included collaboration with Oscar Niemeyer
amongst others. Portinari's works can be found in galleries and settings in Brazil and abroad, ranging from the family chapel in his childhood home in Brodowski to his panels Guerra e Paz (War and Peace) in the United Nations
building in New York. The range and sweep of his output is quite remarkable. It includes images of childhood, paintings depicting rural and urban labour, refugees fleeing the hardships of Brazil's rural north-east, treatments of the key events in the history of Brazil since the arrival of the Portuguese in 1500, portraits of members of his family and leading Brazilian intellectuals, illustrations for books, tiles decorating the Church of São Francisco at Pampulha
, Belo Horizonte
. There were a number of commemorative events in the centenary of his birth in 2003, including an exhibition of his work in London.
On December 20, 2007, his painting O lavrador de café http://ritualcafe.files.wordpress.com/2007/07/lavrador-de-cafe.jpg was stolen from the São Paulo Museum of Art along with Pablo Picasso's Portrait of Suzanne Bloch
. The paintings remained missing until January 8, 2008, when they were recovered in Ferraz de Vasconcelos by the Police of São Paulo
. The paintings were returned, undamaged, to the São Paulo Museum of Art.
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian painters
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
and also a prominent and influential practitioner of the neo-realism
Neorealism (art)
In art, neorealism was established by the ex-Camden Town Group painters Charles Ginner and Harold Gilman at the beginning of World War I. They set out to explore the spirit of their age through the shapes and colours of daily life...
style in painting.
Born to Giovan Battista Portinari and Domenica Torquato, Italian
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
immigrants from Veneto, in a coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
plantation near Brodowski
Brodowski
Brodowski may refer to:* Brodowski, São Paulo, Brazil- Family name :Brodowski is the surname of:* Antoni Stanisław Brodowski , Polish painter* Richard "Dick" Stanley Brodowski , baseball pitcher...
, in São Paulo
São Paulo (state)
São Paulo is a state in Brazil. It is the major industrial and economic powerhouse of the Brazilian economy. Named after Saint Paul, São Paulo has the largest population, industrial complex, and economic production in the country. It is the richest state in Brazil...
, Portinari studied at the Escola Nacional de Belas Artes
Escola Nacional de Belas Artes
Escola de Belas Artes is one of the centers of the Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro and dates back to colonial times....
(ENBA) in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
. In 1928 he won a gold medal at the ENBA and a trip to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
where he stayed until 1930, when he returned to Brazil.
He joined the Brazilian Communist Party
Brazilian Communist Party
Brazilian Communist Party is the oldest political party still active in Brazil, founded in 1922, and one of the only Brazilian parties with a Stalinist orientation...
and stood for senator
Senate of Brazil
The Federal Senate of Brazil is the upper house of the National Congress of Brazil. Created by the first Constitution of the Brazilian Empire in 1824, it was inspired by the United Kingdom's House of Lords, but with the Proclamation of the Republic in 1889 it became closer to the United States...
in 1947 but had to flee Brazil for Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
due to the persecution of Communists by the dictatorship of General Eurico Gaspar Dutra( 1946 to 1951). He returned to Brazil in 1951 but suffered ill health during the last decade of his life and died in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
in 1962 of lead poisoning
Lead poisoning
Lead poisoning is a medical condition caused by increased levels of the heavy metal lead in the body. Lead interferes with a variety of body processes and is toxic to many organs and tissues including the heart, bones, intestines, kidneys, and reproductive and nervous systems...
from his paints.
Oscar Niemeyer
Oscar Ribeiro de Almeida Niemeyer Soares Filho is a Brazilian architect specializing in international modern architecture...
amongst others. Portinari's works can be found in galleries and settings in Brazil and abroad, ranging from the family chapel in his childhood home in Brodowski to his panels Guerra e Paz (War and Peace) in the United Nations
United Nations Art Collection
The United Nations Art Collection is a collective group of artworks and historic objects donated as gifts to the United Nations by its member states, associations, or individuals...
building in New York. The range and sweep of his output is quite remarkable. It includes images of childhood, paintings depicting rural and urban labour, refugees fleeing the hardships of Brazil's rural north-east, treatments of the key events in the history of Brazil since the arrival of the Portuguese in 1500, portraits of members of his family and leading Brazilian intellectuals, illustrations for books, tiles decorating the Church of São Francisco at Pampulha
Pampulha
Pampulha is a man-made lagoon located in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. It is also the name of the surrounding residential neighborhood and is one of the city's administrative regions....
, Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
. There were a number of commemorative events in the centenary of his birth in 2003, including an exhibition of his work in London.
On December 20, 2007, his painting O lavrador de café http://ritualcafe.files.wordpress.com/2007/07/lavrador-de-cafe.jpg was stolen from the São Paulo Museum of Art along with Pablo Picasso's Portrait of Suzanne Bloch
Portrait of Suzanne Bloch
Portrait of Suzanne Bloch is a painting by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, executed in Paris in 1904, towards the end of his blue period...
. The paintings remained missing until January 8, 2008, when they were recovered in Ferraz de Vasconcelos by the Police of São Paulo
Polícia Militar do Estado de São Paulo
The Polícia Militar do Estado de São Paulo is a law enforcement agency of the military kind in the state of São Paulo, Brazil...
. The paintings were returned, undamaged, to the São Paulo Museum of Art.