Oswaldo Goeldi

Oswaldo Goeldi was a Brazilian artist and renowned engraver. He was the son of Swiss naturalist Émil Goeldi, who was the director of the Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi in Belém. Oswaldo Goeldi spent his childhood in Brazil, but moved to Switzerland with his family in 1910. He studied art in Bern, Zurich and Geneva, where he learned lithography and was influenced by expressionism. He returned to Brazil in 1919 and began working as an engraver and illustrator for magazines and books. He also participated in the Week of Modern Art in São Paulo in 1922, which was a landmark event for the Brazilian avant-garde movement. Goeldi was known for his expressive and dramatic wood engravings, which depicted urban scenes, landscapes, animals and human figures. He used contrast, texture and perspective to create a sense of loneliness, anxiety and mystery in his works. He was inspired by artists such as Alfred Kubin, Edvard Munch, James Ensor and Käthe Kollwitz. He also admired the Brazilian folk art and literature, especially the works of Machado de Assis and Graciliano Ramos. Goeldi had several solo and group exhibitions in Brazil and abroad, and received many awards and honors for his work. He also taught at the Escola Nacional de Belas Artes in Rio de Janeiro from 1952 until his death in 1961. He is considered one of the most important Brazilian engravers of the 20th century and a master of expressionist xylography.