The starting point for this guided tour in Portuguese is the catalogue of the exhibition “The Douro seen by Plastic Artists”, held at the Soares dos Reis National Museum in 1963, as part of the celebrations for the inauguration of the Arrábida Bridge.
This visit revisits newspaper reports from the time, the photo album from the exhibition’s opening, as well as the reference catalogues in which these paintings were featured, which are part of the Museum’s library collection. The highlights are the work of artists Manuel Maria Lúcio and Joaquim Lopes.
Manuel Maria Lúcio, an amateur painter, chose the painter Artur Loureiro as his master. Among the artists who frequented his studio in the gardens of the Crystal Palace, Manuel Maria Lúcio was one of his favourite disciples. Since 1944, the Soares dos Reis National Museum has housed a significant part of his art collection and library.
In Gaia, in the house where he lived all his life, he assembled an important collection, especially of contemporary paintings, pieces of furniture, earthenware and enamels. As well as being a collector, Manuel Maria Lúcio was a remarkable bibliophile.
Although he didn’t study at the Academia Portuense de Belas Artes, he used books and publications as a vehicle for artistic culture. In the screens, boards and pastels he painted, we can see various aspects of the Alto-Douro and Vale do Vouga regions, Gaia and Porto, such as Rio Douro, from 1906, exhibited at the Soares dos Reis National Museum.
Joaquim Lopes enrolled at the Porto School of Fine Arts in 1906, where he was taught by José de Brito in Drawing and Marques de Oliveira in Painting. Marques de OIiveira had a great influence on his education and his friendship and admiration for the master are evident in the work he later wrote about him.
In Oporto, Joaquim Lopes was a member of the Oporto Fine Arts Society, presenting his work at its exhibitions from 1918 onwards and taking part in the attempt at renewal carried out by various artists.
In his vast oeuvre he touched on various genres, such as landscape, which was a frequent motif in his painting, giving it a characteristic colour and vigour. In addition to the Soares dos Reis National Museum, Joaquim Lopes’ work can be found in various museums and public institutions, such as the Chiado Museum in Lisbon, the Grão Vasco Museum in Viseu and the Abade de Baçal Museum in Bragança, as well as in private collections.
Image
Soares dos Reis National Museum
Inventory No.: 900 Pin CMP/ MNSR
Title: Boats unloading on the River Douro
Author: Lopes, Joaquim Francisco
Dated: 1927