Frank Schaeffer (1917 - 2008)
Painter, draftsman, printmaker, illustrator, teacher.
He received his first art training studying painting with Wlazek in Rio de Janeiro. He then left for Vienna, where he studied drawing with Grom-Rottmeier. By the 1940s he was back in Brazil, graduating as an engineer in 1943 from the Escola Nacional de Engenharia of the former Universidade do Brasil.
In the following years he refined his painting and explored printmaking with Arpad Szenes and Hans Steiner, respectively. Returning to Europe between 1948 and 1949, he studied with Fernand Léger, André Lhote, Robert Cami and Ducos de la Haille.
He then built an active career in Brazil and abroad. He illustrated the books Guerra e Paz [War and Peace], by Leo Tolstoy, Contos Russos [Russian Tales], São Jorge de Ilhéus, by Jorge Amado, and Antologia Poética [Poetic Anthology], by Augusto Frederico Schmidt. In 1960, he received the Prêmio Jabuti as best national illustrator. He also produced an extensive body of expressionist painting, moving between abstraction and figuration, held in several Brazilian and foreign collections, notably landscapes and portraits.
“Frank Schaeffer is a painter of expressionist character, practicing a figurative art which, despite the variations obviously brought about by the passing of the years, has in essence always remained true to itself.” (LEITE, José Roberto Teixeira (org.), 1988:464). A highly regarded Brazilian painter who was also an engineer, draftsman and teacher. Born in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, in 1917, he studied painting with the Hungarian artist Arpad Szenes.
He was invited by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to hold several exhibitions in that country and give lectures on the arts of Brazil. He taught, illustrated book covers for famous writers, created panels for institutions and received several awards. He traveled throughout Europe and several countries in the Americas. In 1971, Quirino Campofiorito wrote: - “Frank Schaeffer occupies a very special place in Brazilian art; without joining currents or tendencies, without belonging to groups, he is respected by all for his integrity, competence and work as a true professional. His work Ressaca [Undertow], of 1959, belongs to the collection of the Museu Nacional de Belas Artes in Rio. He received his first art training studying painting with Wlazek in Rio de Janeiro. He then left for Vienna, where he studied drawing with Grom-Rottmeier. By the 1940s he was back in Brazil, graduating as an engineer in 1943 from the Escola Nacional de Engenharia of the former Universidade do Brasil. In the following years he refined his painting and explored printmaking with Arpad Szenes and Hans Steiner, respectively. Returning to Europe between 1948 and 1949, he studied with Fernand Léger, André Lhote, Robert Cami and Ducos de la Haille. He then built an active career in Brazil and abroad. He illustrated the books Guerra e Paz [War and Peace], by Leo Tolstoy, Contos Russos [Russian Tales], São Jorge de Ilhéus, by Jorge Amado, and Antologia Poética [Poetic Anthology], by Augusto Frederico Schmidt. He held solo exhibitions and took part in group shows in salons from 1941 in Brazil, France, England, Norway, the United States, Austria, Peru and Argentina.
He took part in the São Paulo, Barcelona and Mexico Biennials.
He took part in the Fine Arts and Modern Art Salons in Rio and other states.
He produced an extensive body of expressionist painting, moving between abstraction and figuration, held in several Brazilian and foreign collections, notably landscapes and portraits.
Critiques
"Frank Schaeffer occupies a very special place in Brazilian art: without joining currents or tendencies, without belonging to groups, he is respected by all for his integrity, his competence and his work as a true professional."
Quirino Campofiorito
LOUZADA, Júlio. Artes plásticas: seu mercado, seus leilões. São Paulo: J. Louzada, 1984-.
"Teacher and painter, Schaeffer has followed the fantastic path of his figuration without wavering. Landscapes and sea scenes, old machines now transformed into birds caught in a light, in a transfiguration of disaster and suspense. Schaeffer's fable must be accepted for the integrity of his inspiration and the coherence of his life. Among those who still project themselves onto the canvas, one of our best and most definitive."
Walmyr Ayala
LOUZADA, Júlio. Artes plásticas: seu mercado, seus leilões. São Paulo: J. Louzada, 1984-.
Collections
Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo, MAM/SP - São Paulo SP
Solo Exhibitions
1950/1973 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Solo
1954 - Paris (France) - Solo, at Maison de L'Amérique Latine
1968 - São Paulo SP - Solo
1972 - Belo Horizonte MG - Solo
1985 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Retrospective Exhibition 1938 - 1985, at MNBA
1987 - Belo Horizonte MG - Solo
1990 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Solo, at Galeria Solo Espaço de Arte
1998 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Landscapes, at Galeria Sesc Copacabana
1999 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Frank Schaeffer and the Sea, at Espaço Cultural da Marinha
2001 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Por Terras e Mares [By Land and Sea], at MNBA - Sala Bernardelli
Group Exhibitions
1940 - Rio Grande do Sul - 2nd Salon of the Instituto de Belas Artes - honorable mention
1942 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - National Salon of Fine Arts - honorable mention
1943 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - National Salon of Fine Arts
1943 - São Paulo SP - 9th São Paulo Fine Arts Salon, at Galeria Prestes Maia
1944 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 50th National Salon of Fine Arts, at MNBA
1946 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Painters Go to the People's School, at Escola Nacional de Belas Artes
1951 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - National Salon of Fine Arts - silver medal
1951 - São Paulo SP - 1st São Paulo International Biennial, at Pavilhão do Trianon
1953 - São Paulo SP - 2nd São Paulo International Biennial, at Pavilhão dos Estados
1954 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 3rd National Salon of Modern Art
1954 - Salvador BA - 4th Bahia Fine Arts Salon, at Hotel Bahia
1955 - Porto Alegre RS - Contemporary Brazilian Art, at Museu de Arte do Rio Grande do Sul
1955 - São Paulo SP - 3rd São Paulo International Biennial, at Pavilhão das Nações
1955 - São Paulo SP - 4th São Paulo Salon of Modern Art, at Galeria Prestes Maia
1956 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 1st Railway Salon, at Ministério da Educação e Cultura
1956 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 5th National Salon of Modern Art - domestic travel prize
1957 - Buenos Aires (Argentina) - Traveling show Modern Art in Brazil
1957 - Lima (Peru) - Traveling show Modern Art in Brazil
1957 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 6th National Salon of Modern Art
1957 - Rosario (Argentina) - Traveling show Modern Art in Brazil
1957 - Santiago (Chile) - Traveling show Modern Art in Brazil
1957 - São Paulo SP - 4th São Paulo International Biennial
1958 - Mexico - 1st Inter-American Biennial of Mexico
1958 - Pará - 1st Pan-American Art Salon
1958 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Salão de Arte A Mãe e a Criança [Mother and Child Art Salon]
1958 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Sea Salon
1959 - São Paulo SP - 5th São Paulo International Biennial, at Pavilhão Ciccilo Matarazzo Sobrinho
1961 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 1st The Face and the Work, at Galeria Ibeu Copacabana
1961 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Still Life in Painting, at Galeria Ibeu Copacabana
1961 - São Paulo SP - 6th São Paulo International Biennial, at Pavilhão Ciccilo Matarazzo Sobrinho
1962 - Pará - 9th Visual Arts Salon of the Instituto de Belas Artes
1963 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Landscape as Theme, at Galeria Ibeu Copacabana
1963 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Resumo JB [JB Summary], group show celebrating the 4th Centenary, at MAM/RJ
1963 - São Paulo SP - 7th São Paulo International Biennial, at Fundação Bienal
1965 - Bonn (Germany) - Brazilian Art Today Show
1965 - Brussels (Belgium) - Brazilian Art Today Show
1965 - London (England) - Brazilian Art Today Show
1965 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 3rd JB Art Summary, at MAM/RJ
1965 - São Paulo SP - 8th São Paulo International Biennial, at Fundação Bienal
1965 - Vienna (Austria) - Brazilian Art Today Show
1967 - São Paulo SP - 9th São Paulo International Biennial, at Fundação Bienal
1969 - São Paulo SP - 1st Panorama of Current Brazilian Art, at MAM/SP
1972 - Curitiba PR - 29th Paraná Salon, at Teatro Guaíra
1974 - Bogotá (Colombia) - Exhibition, at Galeria San Diego. Patrocinado pela Divisão Cultural do Itamarati
1974 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - The Sea, at Galeria Ibeu Copacabana
1981 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Nuchy Group Show, at Nuchy Galeria de Arte
1983 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 6th National Visual Arts Salon, at MAM/RJ
1984 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Recent Donations 82-84, at MNBA
1984 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Active Brazilian Painting, at Espaço Petrobras
1985 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - 8th National Visual Arts Salon, at MAM/RJ
1985 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Galeria Ibeu Copacabana 25 Years: 1960-1985, at Instituto Brasil-Estados Unidos
1986 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Wartime: Hotel Internacional, at Galeria de Arte Banerj
1986 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Wartime: Pensão Mauá, at Galeria de Arte Banerj
1987 - São Paulo SP - 20th Contemporary Art Exhibition, at Chapel Art Show
1988 - Salvador BA - The Illustrators of Jorge Amado, at Fundação Casa de Jorge Amado
1994 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Viagem de Inverno [Winter Journey], with Maria Verônica Martins, at MNBA
1997 - Florianópolis SC - Viagem de Inverno [Winter Journey], with Maria Verônica Martins, at UFSC
1997 - Ottawa (Canada) - Two Artists from Rio, at Galeria Calligrammes
1997 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Poemas Visitados [Visited Poems], at Espaço Cultural dos Correios
1999 - Niterói RJ - Rio Printmaking Show. Banerj Collection, at Museu do Ingá
1999 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Rio Printmaking Show. Brazilian Modern Printmaking: Museu Nacional de Belas Artes Collection, at MNBA
1999 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Poemas Visitados [Visited Poems] Black and White Version, at Galeria Sesc Copacabana
2001 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Brazilian Watercolor, at Centro Cultural Light
Source: Itaú Cultural and Wikipedia
