The beginning of the 1950’s was an ungrateful period for artists that were not connected to the regime. The official showings were closed (S.P.N./S.N.I.) in 1951, there were no buyers to keep the art halls of General Exhibitions of Fine Arts open, which would end in 1956 due to having no autonomous market – It wasn’t enough, not even to maintain Galeria de Março, which was open between 1952 and 1954—the artists faced a brief period of professional distress, which nevertheless did not compromise the deepening of innovative experiences in the aesthetic domain.
On the second half of the decade, Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation was created, which would come to have, at that time and in the following decades, an irreplaceable role in supporting contemporary art and artists, and was instrumental in a certain revolution that took place in the 1960’s. Four factors were central for its role: the organization of the Exhibitions of Fine Arts, which, despite being critiqued when opened due to the choice of artists — which included a large number of academics of anachronic work — allowed to show and reward a new generation whose work was distinguished; the publication of the journal Colóquio in 1959, which helped broaden the horizons of the aesthetic and the maturing of critical thinking; the regular acquisition of pieces by contemporary artists for the creation of a collection, which would show itself to be profitable internationally and nationally; The most important of the four, the creation of scholarships that led numerous artists to profitable stays abroad in 1957.
The broadening of the horizons was the most relevant factor of the 60’s it would come to irreversibly change the national artistic scene, even though a considerably large part of the artists opted for remaining abroad when the scholarship ended. Most of the scholarship requests came from Paris, reinforcing the 1900’s tradition, however, the loss for artistic centrality in the French capital, due to talented artists escaping the Second World War, led some artists to seek schools in London and New York.
Sem título, 1968
Óleo sobre madeira, Colecção Gulbenkian
Sem título 1968
Óleo sobre madeira, Colecção da Fundação de Serralves
Sem título, 1968
Tinta industrial sobre madeira, Colecção da Fundação de Serralves
Uma Rosa É, 1968
Óleo sobre tela, Colecção Gulbenkian
Homenagem a Malevitch, 1967
Óleo sobre tela, Colecção Gulbenkian
Do Sofrimento, 1960
Óleo sobre tela, Colecção Gulbenkian
S. Vomiting the Pátria 1960
Óleo sobre tela, Colecção Gulbenkian
Stray Dogs (The Dogs of Barcelona), 1965
Óleo sobre tela, Colecção João Rendeiro (paradeiro desconhecido)
Cegos de Madrid, 1957
Óleo sobre tela, Colecção Gulbenkian
Mobile 1964
Aço e madeira pintada
Caixa madeira 1963
Madeira, Tinta e Assemblage, Colecção Gulbenkian
Caixa Alumínio (lagostins) 1962
Técnica mista, Colecção Caixa Geral de Depósitos
Sombras deitadas, 1969
Lençol bordado à mão, Museu do Chiado
Comedor 1961
Assemblagem de objectos com pintura a alumínio, Museu do Chiado
In the Café, 1964
Plexiglass, Madeira e Acrílico, Tinta acrílica, Colecção Gulbenkian
Nuvem com Superfície Variável – III, 1967
Alumínio, Programador e Motor, Alumínio pintado, Colecção Gulbenkian
Palmeira, 1966
Alumínio pintado, ventoinha elétrica, Serralves
S/Título (Relevo Espacial) 1974
Madeira, Chapa de ferro recortada, Colecção Gulbenkian