Biography
Biografia (PT)
Biografía (ESP)
The painter, designer, engraver, art critic, scenographer, poet, illustrator, professor, cultural activist and ecologist Hermano Guedes de Melo, artistically known as Hermano José, was born on July 15, 1922, in the "Engenho Baixa-Verde", property of his maternal uncle, Mr. Joaquim José Pereira de Melo, in a region belonging to the municipality of Serraria, which is located in the micro-region of Brejo, in the state of Paraíba. He was the firstborn in a family of twelve siblings, sons of the federal public collector and musician Raul Espínola, and of his legitimate cousin, the housewife Maria Alice.
In 1923 Hermano's family moved to the city of Caiçara, where he started his primary school education. Until he was twelve years old his life was divided between the green landscapes of the Engenho Baixa-Verde, where he spent his vacations; described by him as "the place of scents, colors and joy" (quote); and the semi-arid landscapes of the municipality of Caiçara.
In 1936 Hermano José was sent by his father to the capital city of João Pessoa, to continue his studies at the traditional Santa Theresinha School, located at Trincheiras Street, and it was there that his first steps in drawing and painting were taken. He spent a year living with his maternal grandparents, at João Machado Street, in the jaguaribe neighborhood, until in 1937 the artist's father bought a residential property where he started living with his family, at Almeida Barreto Street. Later, he entered Paraibano School, now Lyceu Paraibano, where he started writing through the stimulus of the educator Olivina Olívia.
In 1945, at the age of 23, he was hired as an employee at Banco do Brasil, in the city of Natal, state of Rio Grande do Norte. At this time he made his first works in oil on canvas. In 1946 he moved back to João Pessoa and was invited to be part of the Board of Directors of the Centro de Artes Plásticas da Paraíba (a private entity), with the objective of increasing the teaching of drawing and painting in João Pessoa.
On the Board of Directors of the Centro de Artes Plásticas da Paraíba (Paraíba Center for Visual Arts), Hermano taught young artists who became a reference on the Paraíba visual arts scene, such as Ivan Freitas, Archidy Picado, Flávio Tavares, Miguel dos Santos, Fred Svendsen, Clovis Junior, Martinho Patrício, and Walter Wagner.
In 1949, he began to participate actively in the illustrations of Paraíba newspapers with the members of the Center for Visual Arts, especially the “Correio das Artes”, to which he was awarded for coordinating the exhibition “Um Século da Pintura Brasileira” (Assis Chateaubriand Award), to study as a scholarship holder in Europe.
In 1950, subsidized by a scholarship from the “Correio das Artes”, he traveled to Lisbon, Venice, Paris, Rome and Florence, from where he returned the same year and began to produce even more actively, although divided between his artistic work and the “Banco do Brasil” job. At this time, the artist began to dedicate himself to the genre of landscape, with the “Cabo Branco” cliff as the central theme that will permeate his entire production.
A diversified artist, Hermano also worked in the theatrical area as a general director, set designer, sound designer, and costume designer. His first experience was in 1955 with the play "Cantam as Harpas de Sião", by Ariano Suassuna. At the premiere, held at the Santa Roza Theater, the author Ariano himself praised the play. For the scenography of the play "A corda", he was awarded the Silver Medal in the 2nd National Theater Festival, in Natal, Rio Grande do Norte.
In 1956 Hermano moved to Rio de Janeiro (RJ), a fact that, according to researchers of his work, changed the artist's life radically. At the time, the city of Rio de Janeiro was going through a cultural effervescence, and the city's Museum of Modern Art (MAM-RIO) inaugurated the Etching Atelier, where the artist was awarded a scholarship to study etching, and from 1959 to 1963 he produced about 46 etchigs. In the year 1960, the artist intensified his presence in exhibitions, such as "I Salão O Retrato e a Obra", promoted by “Instituto Brasil - Estados Unidos - IBEU”, and the IX edition of “Salão de Arte Moderna”. The following year, 1961, he exhibited three engravings in the “V Bienal de São Paulo” and in the “X Salão Nacional de Arte Moderna”. Hermano José's works of engraving rapidly entered the visual arts circuit in this period.
At this time he began to sell his works to collectors, and to outline an international career. Participates in the group exhibition of engravings held by Picolla Galleria, the Italian Institute of Culture in Rio de Janeiro, being awarded the best of the year. In 1963 he participated in the I Latin American Biennial of Printmaking, in Santiago, Chile (an event that brought together the most important printmakers in Latin America), and the exhibition Brazilian Printmaking, in London. He has a work acquired for the collection of the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and finally exhibits again at the XII National Salon of Modern Art. In 1965 he is quoted in "A Gravura Brasileira", a book by José Teixeira de Leite, and in 1966 he participates in the exhibition Internacionale d'Estampes at the Vancouver Art Gallery, invited to the American Biennial of Art in Córdoba (Argentina) and to the V Salon of Current Art in Valencia, Spain, as well as becoming part of the collection of The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Between 1968 and 1974 Hermano was included in the Dicionário de Artes Plásticas no Brasil (Dictionary of Plastic Arts in Brazil), published by “Editora Civilização Brasileira”, written by the art critic Roberto Pontual (1939-1992). He was also mentioned in the Dicionário Brasileiro de Artistas Plásticos (Brazilian Dictionary of Plastic Artists), published by the “Instituto Nacional do Livro”, and in the “Grande Enciclopédia Delta Larousse”. In 1975 he was invited to participate in an exhibition of prints at the Brazilian Embassy in Rome, indicated by Fayga Ostrower.
In 1976 he returned to Paraíba as cultural advisor to the governor Ivan Bichara Sobreira, to set up the state art museum, which did not materialize. In parallel, he taught a course in Etching at UFPB. The 1970s were also important for Hermano's definitive settlement in João Pessoa, who in 1979 built his house in the cove of the Bessa neighborhood, by the sea. The house was donated to UFPB and today is the headquarters of the Hermano José House of Culture Museum.
In 1979, the Federal Government appointed Professor Dr. Tarcísio de Miranda Burity to govern Paraíba. Burity created the “Espaço Cultural José Lins Do Rego”, and Hermano José, who had made suggestions for the implementation of the visual arts sector of the institution, was invited to take over the Visual Arts Coordination, in 1982, where he also worked as a painting teacher. He unsuccessfully tried to develop the visual art department, and his frustration culminated in his resignation.
In 1980 he joined the Federal University of Paraíba (UFPB) as a professor in the Department of Art and Communication (DAC) in the Center of Human Sciences, Literature and Arts (CCHLA) and idealized the creation of the Pinacoteca of UFPB, which only materialized in 1987, and which he coordinated for 4 years. In 1981, he also joined the board of the Institute of Historical and Architectural Heritage of Paraíba (IPHAEP), where he participated for eight years.
The 1990s are marked by Hermano José's intense engagement in environmental preservation policies. In 1992 he participated in the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (ECO 92), where he presented the lithograph "Cabo Branco: until when?” During this period he also took on cultural management positions at the city's Department of Culture. He is responsible for implementing the “Viva Cultura” law, as well as coordinating the return of the “Salão Municipal de Artes Plásticas -Semap”, and consolidating the creation of the Scenic Project “Paixão de Cristo”, a traditional Christmas event in the city of João Pessoa. In 1997, he held his first solo exhibition, entitled "Desenhos de Hermano José'', curated by Gabriel Bechara Filho, held at the Núcleo de Arte Contemporânea (NAC/UFPB), from which he presented a series of drawings and studies of male nudes produced throughout his life.
From the 2000s on, with the consolidation of his prestige in Paraíba, Hermano began to receive several tributes and his name became the title of collections and libraries, such as the Hermano José Art Library, in “Zarinha Centro de Cultura”, and the Hermano José Rooms, one in the Pinacoteca UFPB and another in the “Núcleo de Arte, Cultura e Eventos” (IFPB), while launching biographical catalogs and exhibiting important retrospectives.
Time did not dissuade him from dreaming of an art museum in Paraíba, and he organized a petition in 2006 for the purpose. Already in the 10's, his first concerns with his personal collection appear, and then he seeks to establish partnerships with the City Hall, the State Government, and UFPB. Hermano died on May 21, 2015, as a result of pneumonia, at the age of 92, in the city of João Pessoa. He left a collection of about 6,500 cultural assets and a library with approximately 3,000 titles. A diverse and precious collection with works in 25 different types, including engravings, paintings, sculptures, stained glass, tableware, both from his own production and from important national artists, and also archival items that tell the story of the arts in the state of Paraíba.
An extensive group of intellectuals pleaded with the dean Margareth Diniz, that the university aggregate the house and the collection of the artist to the patrimony of the institution. Then, with the intention of preserving and maintaining his artistic and personal history for posterity, all his collection, with the house that the artist built, originated the Hermano José House of Culture Museum, responsible for keeping alive the memory and legacy of Hermano José, as well as contributing to the strengthening of the artistic-cultural circuit, continuing the practice that was the artist's way.
References
BECHARA FILHO, Gabriel. A construção do campo artístico na Bahia e na Paraíba, (1930-1959). Salvador, 2007. Tese defendida no Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Sociais da Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA). Salvador/BA, 2007. Disponível em: https://repositorio.ufba.br/ri/handle/ri/10230
ANDRADE, Irismar Fernandes de. A vida luminosa de Hermano José. João Pessoa: Sesc Paraíba, 2013.
GOMES, Dyógenes Chaves. Dicionário de Artes Visuais na Paraíba - João Pessoa: Editora 2ou4, 2015.
SILVA, Ronieli V. da; OLIVEIRA, B. J. F. Acervo Hermano José: Vivências multidisciplinares e desafios arquivísticos. XXII Encontro Nacional de Estudantes de Arquivologia. Belém-PA, 2018. Disponível em: http://2018.enearq.com.br/trabalhos-aprovados/
SILVA, R. V.; ANJOS, E. C.; OLIVEIRA, B. M. J. F.; A caixa mágica do colecionismo de Hermano José. In: Patrimônio, informação e memória: tríade para construção e fortalecimento identitário. Org.: Bernardina M. J. Freire de Oliveira... [et al.]. – João Pessoa: Editora UFPB, 2019.305 p. Disponível em: http://www.editora.ufpb.br/sistema/press5/index.php/UFPB/catalog/book/364