Trajetórias da joalharia contemporânea em Portugal

: artistas e contextos : 1963-2004

Abstract

Contemporary jewellery (joalharia) in Portugal emerged into the public eye in 1963, though at the time it was still known as modern goldsmithing (ourivesaria). The designations for the novel work then appearing led to the search for and use of new terminologies that broadened the etymological meaning of the term jewellery. For a Definition of Contemporary Jewellery, in chapter 1, marks the start of this investigation, focusing on the respective redefinition and new meanings acquired by this area of jewellery which arose in the 1960s. Contemporary Jewellery in the Portuguese Artistic Context, chapter 2, continues by situating contemporary jewellery vis-à-vis artistic movements in the period framed by three exhibitions – two individual and one collective. The first two, in 1963, highlighted the distinctiveness of two outstanding artists who were redefining the term jewellery, reflecting both the time and its underlying artistic contexts, while the third, in 2004, showcased the work of a large group comprising three generations of artists with a particular focus on different links to the school that led to multiple national and international “meeting points” around this study subject. Chapters 3 and 6 expand their scope to consider the periods before and after the timeframe of this work. Those two chapters, like chapters 4 and 5, aim to investigate, systemise and analyse documentation gathered in the field of contemporary jewellery, providing a background for the decades included in the given period – a time which lacked inventorying and analysis of the facts, actions and careers of artists working in the Portuguese context. This research is supported by statements from jewellery artists, experts and others which compensate for the absence of a bibliographic reference corpus on contemporary jewellery in Portugal. That testimony is included in this thesis, showing that this study subject is not closed and is still building its history. The consequent awareness of this process under construction leads readers to the Final Considerations which diagnose and seek responses to the overdue explanation of this research, as well as stressing the importance of continuing this work in the near future. A graphic chronology closes this study, listing various events and providing readers with a brief and straightforward forty-year overview of the subject matter.

Date of Award	13 Nov 2018
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Gonçalo Vasconcelos e Sousa (Supervisor)