Manuel Pereira Silva

Manuel Pereira da Silva was a prominent figure of the Portuguese modernist movement, who explored various styles and techniques throughout his long and prolific career. He started as a neo-realist sculptor, depicting the harsh realities of the working class and the oppressed under the dictatorship of Salazar. He was also involved in political activism and resistance, which led him to be arrested and persecuted several times. He moved to Paris in 1946 and 1947, where he studied at the Paris College of Arts and was influenced by artists such as Picasso, Matisse, Dubuffet, and Brancusi. He experimented with different forms of expressionism, abstraction, and collage. He returned to Portugal in 1948 and continued to produce sculptures, drawings, paintings, and writings until his death in 2003. He was widely recognized and honored for his artistic achievements, both nationally and internationally. He received several awards, such as the Teixeira Lopes Prize, the Soares dos Reis Prize, the Gulbenkian Prize, and the Medal of Cultural Merit. He also founded the Manuel Pereira da Silva Foundation, which houses his personal collection and organizes exhibitions and cultural events.