António Manuel da Fonseca (27 September 1796, Lisbon - 4 October 1890, Lisbon) was a Portuguese painter, illustrator and theatrical designer; best known for his mythological and historical scenes.

Biography

His first studies were with his father, , who was a painter and sculptor.Brief biography
@ the

Chiado Museum The National Museum of Contemporary Art (Chiado Museum, in Portuguese: ''Museu Nacional de Arte Contemporânea do Chiado'' – MNAC) is an art museum located in the Chiado neighbourhood of Lisbon, Portugal. It was created in 1911 and re-inaug ...

website. He then worked at the "Aula de Desenho e de Figura e História", founded by Joaquim Manuel da Rocha (1727-1786). His first known work is a panel depicting King

João VI , house = Braganza , father = Peter III of Portugal , mother = Maria I of Portugal , birth_date = , birth_place = Queluz Palace, Queluz, Portugal , death_date = , death_place = Bemposta Palace, Lisbon, Portugal ...

and

Carlota Joaquina Doña Carlota Joaquina Teresa Cayetana of Spain (25 April 1775 – 7 January 1830) was Queen of Portugal and Brazil as the wife of King Dom John VI. She was the daughter of King Don Charles IV of Spain and Maria Luisa of Parma. ...

, executed in 1820 at the "Palácio das Laranjeiras" for Joaquim Pedro Quintela, 1st Count of Farrobo and his wife. Two years later, he produced a large series of frescoes at the Palácio de Quintela;Brief biography
from the notes to ''Obras, precedidas de um ensaio biographico, augmentadas com algumas composições ineditas do poeta pelo visconde de Juromenha'' @ Google Books. mostly scenes from the Roman-Sabine wars, landscapes showing Rome and its environs and miscellaneous themes from Greek mythology. In 1878, when he was in his 80s, he returned to do restorative work. Fonseca eneias1

In 1825, he painted curtains for the

Teatro Nacional de São Carlos The ''Teatro Nacional de São Carlos'' () (''National Theatre of Saint Charles'') is an opera house in Lisbon, Portugal. It was opened on June 30, 1793 by Queen Maria I as a replacement for the Tejo Opera House, which was destroyed in the 1755 L ...

, followed by a portrait of King Pedro IV. Supported by the King and Count Quintela, he was able to go to Rome, where he made copies of the Old Masters and completed his artistic training with

Vincenzo Camuccini Vincenzo Camuccini (22 February 1771 – 2 September 1844) was an Italian painter of Neoclassic histories and religious paintings. He was considered the premier academic painter of his time in Rome. Biography Camuccini was born in Rome, and fi ...

and Andrea Pozzi. He also spent time in London and Paris and, when he returned in 1836, he was appointed a Professor of history painting at the "Academia de Belas-Artes" (now part of the

University of Lisbon The University of Lisbon (ULisboa; pt, Universidade de Lisboa, ) is a public research university in Lisbon, and the largest university in Portugal. It was founded in 2013, from the merger of two previous public universities located in Lisbon, th ...

).Biographical notes
from the ''Diccionario bibliographico portuguez'' @ Google Books. In 1838, he designed costumes for a play by

Almeida Garrett João Baptista da Silva Leitão de Almeida Garrett, 1st Viscount of Almeida Garrett (; 4 February 1799 – 9 December 1854) was a Portuguese poet, orator, playwright, novelist, journalist, politician, and a peer of the realm. A major promoter of t ...

and did set designs for the opera ''

Robert le diable ''Robert le diable'' (''Robert the Devil'') is an opera in five acts composed by Giacomo Meyerbeer between 1827 and 1831, to a libretto written by Eugène Scribe and Germain Delavigne. ''Robert le diable'' is regarded as one of the first grand o ...

'' by Giacomo Meyerbeer. Together with the

lithographer Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

, Maurício José Sendim (1786-1870), he created illustrations for the ''Quadros históricos'' by António Feliciano de Castilho. He continued to exhibit frequently, culminating in 1880 at a major exhibition in the "Palácio de Cristal" in

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

. He also served as drawing master to the future King Carlos and his brother Afonso. His many honors include Knighthood in the Order of Christ and the

Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa The Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa (also known as The Order of Our Lady of Conception of Vila Vicosa; pt, Ordem de Nossa Senhora da Conceição de Vila Viçosa) is a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Braganza, the f ...

, as well as being a corresponding member of the

Institut de France The (; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the Académie Française. It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute ...

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fonseca, Antonio Manuel da 1796 births 1890 deaths Portuguese painters Portuguese male painters History painters Mythology in art Court painters Artists from Lisbon Portuguese scenic designers Knights of the Order of Christ (Portugal) Knights of the Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa 19th-century Portuguese people

Biography

References

Further reading

External links