Henrique Pousão was a Portuguese painter. He was a representative of the Realistic art movement.
Background
Pousão was born in Vila Vicosa, Portugal, on January 1, 1859. He was the son of Francisco Augusto Nunes de Pousão, a magistrate, and Maria Teresa Alves de Araújo. His paternal grandfather, Caetano Alves de Araújo, produced Instituição do Santíssimo Sacramento for the Chapel of Santíssimo Sacramento in Nossa Senhora da Conceição Church, Vila Viçosa, and his paternal great-grandfather, António Pousão, created several paintings for the Convent of São Paulo da Serra de Ossa, in Redondo.
Education
Pousão's talent for painting was noticed at the age of ten when he made a copy of a Rubens' portrait. In 1872 he entered the Fine Arts Academy of Porto (present-day Faculty of Fine Arts of the University of Porto). There Henrique Pousão was taught by Thadeo Maria de Almeida Furtado and João António Correia, and studied with Sousa Pinto, Custódio Rocha and José de Brito. He completed his studies in 1879 with excellent grades and a number of prizes. Following his graduation, Pousão moved to France with fellow José Júlio de Souza Pinto. There he studied at the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris under the guidance of Adolphe Yvon and Alexandre Cabanel starting from November 1881. However, he suffered from tuberculosis, and under his doctor's advice left Paris and migrated to Italy, hoping that the warmer climate might relieve his condition.
Career
In 1882 Pousão established a studio in Rome on the Via dei Portoghesi and he joined the local Group of Artists. One of the paintings created during this period was Cecília, which he showed at the Paris Salon. Later he moved to Naples and Capri, where he spent the summer and autumn of 1882. Some of his major landscapes were painted during his time in Italy.
Henrique Pousão returned to Rome on January 18, 1883. There he prepared artworks to be sent to the Academy and got acquainted with the painters Pradilla and Monelli, both were representatives of the Mediterranean impressionism. Because of his health condition, in September and October Pousão again moved to Anacapri.
In the year 1884, still unwell, he was forced to return to Portugal. On his way home, he traveled through Sorrento, Castellamare, Rome, Genoa, Naples, Marseille and Barcelona, Seville, Huelva, Valencia, Ayamonte, Guadiana, Vila Real and Olhão. In Portugal Pousão lived with his father. But he stayed there just for a short period of time, and then moved back to Vila Viçosa.
Pousão was a representative of the naturalist generation, although his works were closely connected with impressionism. Some of his best works were created on small wood panels no bigger than 100mm x 160mm in their size.