DOS The Beginnings of A Arte Brasileira, by Gonzaga Duque, in Guanabara

Abstract

In 1888, Rio de Janeiro art critic Luiz Gonzaga Duque Estrada (1863-1911) published his debut book, A Arte Brasileira, in which he sought to understand aspects of painting and sculpture in the country since colonial times. Object of study and commentary for decades, Brazilian Art still raises many questions for the current historiographical debate about artists, works, themes and techniques, notably in themes relating to the Arts of the Second Empire. In this text, the intention is to seek elements to understand the formation of this fundamental book, based on an examination of some of Gonzaga Duque's first appearances in the Rio de Janeiro press, which began in 1883, when the young critic founded, together with Olímpio de Niemeyer (1859-1931), the newspaper Guanabara. At Guanabara, Gonzaga Duque comments on exhibitions, events and perhaps this process lays the foundations for the thinking that will shape Brazilian Art.