When sculpture sought to be only sculpture

Arlindo Rocha Sculptures

When sculpture sought to be only sculpture

Ana Luísa Oliveira

MASTER IN PUBLIC SCULPTURE

Dissertation oriented by Professor Doctor José Carlos Pereira

2011

LISBON UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF FINE ART

Arlindo Gonçalves da Rocha, sculptor born in Oporto, was in conjunction with Fernando Fernandes and Manuel Pereira da Silva, one of the pioneers of abstract sculpture in Portugal. A study trip to Oporto in 2008 was the starting point of the research on the work of Arlindo Rocha, which proved to be a great artistic estate in rich and diverse materials and styles. His work raised some initial issues, in particular by the presence of two distinct artistic languages, one founded on neo-figurative values and another, more solid and innovative for its time, pioneer of a neoplastic language, in the register of Portuguese sculpture. For a better understanding of this issue, this dissertation starts an attempt to understand the time in which the sculptor lived. By knowing more about his time we can understand the reason why his first experiences of an abstractive art emerged timidly, which was intended to be modern and abstract, but remained neo-figurative. As such, this work will also look into the analysis of some sculptures by Arlindo Rocha, where we recognize a pioneer landmark, especially in the exploration of new artistic languages, which help us in understanding the overall work of this sculptor.