The Portuguese painting collection of the National School of Fine Arts in the Post-“1890 Reform” pedagogical context

Abstract

In november of 1890, a wide-ranging reform was effected in the Fine Arts Academy of Rio de Janeiro. The institution was then renamed as National School of Fine Arts (NSFA), and its pedagogical orientation and faculty have been renovated in a meaningful way. From the so-called “1890 Reform”, those, who were responsible for the School, implemented, among other actions, an effort aiming at the expansion and renovation of the institution art collections. In this sense, a set of acquisitions related to Portuguese painting from the end of the 19th century and early 20th century was particularly successful: in a medium term, the NSFA was counting on important works of Portuguese artists, such as Antonio Carvalho da Silva Porto, Columbano Bordallo Pinheiro, José Júlio de Souza Pinto or José Vital Branco Malhoa, — usually grouped under the label “naturalist”, current in the historiography of Portuguese Art. In this article, in addition to presenting the constitution process of the NSFA Portuguese painting collection, I would like to discuss to what extent such a phenomenon can be put in relation to the new pedagogical guidance deployed at the School, after the “1890 Reform”.