In March, the São Paulo Museum of Modern Art received the donation of a work by Sérgio Milliet (1898 – 1966), a great supporter of the museum in its early years and an important figure for Brazilian modernism. The painting was donated by Maria Lúcia de Araújo Cintra and is on display at the Paulo Mendes de Almeida Library until May.
Sérgio Milliet, “Untitled (self-portrait), no date”, oil on wood, front and back, MAM São Paulo collection, donation Maria Lúcia de Araújo Cintra, 2024 / Photos: Jamyle Rkain
Untitled (self-portrait) is a work with unique characteristics: produced in oil on wood, it presents two distinct self-portraits with different finishes, one on the front and the other on the back of the support. In the MAM library, where the painting is exhibited, the catalog of the exhibition “Homage to Sérgio Milliet”, held by the museum in 1969, is also available for public consultation. of the artist that were scattered throughout the collections of his friends. The catalog has texts by José Geraldo Vieira (1987 – 1977) and Quirino da Silva (1897 – 1981).
As Cauê Alves, chief curator of the museum, explains, Sérgio Milliet was an extremely important character in the founding of MAM São Paulo, at the end of the 1940s. The painter, writer, art critic, translator and sociologist played a decisive role in the entire initial phase of the institution. In this way, displaying the new acquisition of the collection alongside the texts that pay homage to the artist means valuing not only his trajectory in Brazilian art, but the image of the museum itself.
For Alves, “the self-portrait that has just entered the MAM collection complements the other six paintings by the artist already present in the collection that came from the Tamagni collection, fundamental in the second phase of the museum. This work, in particular, has the particularity of featuring a sketch, an unfinished painting on the back, and its complete creation on the front, which allows us to learn a little about his work process.”
The painting remains on display at the Paulo Mendes de Almeida Library until May 12th. Visitation takes place from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10am to 6pm, with the last entry at 5:30pm. Tickets can be collected via the website or at the physical box office and cost R$30.00 full price and R$15.00 half price. On Sundays, entry is free and visitors can contribute whatever amount they want.