Rolando Sá Nogueira (Lisbon, 1921 – Lisbon, 2002) graduated in Painting at the Lisbon School of Fine Arts (1946-1952), after he requested a transfer from the Architecture course. In 1947, he showed his work for the first time at the 2nd Plastic Arts General Exhibition. Throughout the 1950’s, he participated in important national exhibitions, such as the 1st Plastic Arts Exhibition (1957), the 1st Modern Art Salon (1959) and the 50 Independent artists exhibition (1959). Emerging at the time when the neo-realist movement was affirming itself in Portugal – the principles of neo-realism can be associated to the initial period of his career – the artist made an autonomous path, distancing himself from the more restrict cultural reality of the country at that time. Example of this is his stay in London where, between 1961 and 1964, he studied at the Slade School of Art. There, he got in touch with the emerging British culture, and informed himself with the trendy international artistic currents. Thus, from the lyricism of the first years, he advanced towards an expressionist language which, in the beginning of the 1960’s, evolved to neo-figuration, showing affinities with pop art, into which he integrated specific elements of his daily life in Lisbon, and later in London. From pop language, he also took the imagery of advertising, from magazines and posters, on which he worked using collages and mechanical image reproduction mechanisms. From the 1980’s on, he returned to the expressionist vocabulary, translated in drippings and irregular coloured blots, among other processes. He also had an intense teaching activity, at the Fine Arts National Society, in the 1960’s, at the Oporto Fine Arts School, between 1977 and 1983, and at the Architecture Faculty of the Lisbon University, from 1983 onwards. In 1972, he received an honourable mention of the Soquil Prize and, in 1998, Museu do Chiado organised a Retrospective Exhibition of his work.
FMV, September 2020
