António Soares

Having no academic training, António Soares (Lisbon, 1894 - Lisbon, 1978) started his artistic career as an illustrator, working regularly with magazines such as Megazine Bertrand, ABC and Illustration. He also produced book covers, posters and advertisements. As a painter, Soares presented himself to the public for the first time in 1913 at the II Exhibition of Humorists (Lisbon). From this point on he would be under the public eye, holding several individual exhibitions throughout his career. He would also participate in several group exhibitions, such as the first and second Autumn Salon, several exhibitions of the National Society of Fine Arts and of the National Information Secretariat (NIS). As well as the central names of his time, he participated in the decoration of the Bristol-Club and the café A Brasileira. At this point, the multifaceted character of his artistic practice is understood, which includes not only drawing and painting, but also architecture, decoration and scenography. As a modernist painter a work that stands out is the portrait of the Russian dancer “Natacha” (1928), which won the second medal at the 1929 SNBA Salon. Considered as the central work of Soares, “Natacha” demonstrates an interest in composition and in the human figure, which suggests a look at Columbano's work. It is also a confirmation of the maturity and quality that his work has achieved. In 1935 and 1948 the SNI awarded him the Columbano Prize and in 1962 he received the Diário de Notícias Prize. Internationally he participated in the Vincennes Exhibition (1929); the International Exhibition in Paris (1937) – awarded with a «Grand Prix»; the International Exhibition New York (1939), where he received a Medal of Honor; and the first São Paulo’s Biennial (1951). This recognition in Portugal as a central painter of modernism only accompanied him until roughly the 1940s, when the artist started to abandon a modernist expression and returning to more naturalistic practices. His work can be found in several national collections.

 

FVM, October 2020