Guido Pelegrino Viaro (Província de Rovigo, Veneto Itália 1897 - Curitiba PR 1971)
Painter, illustrator, caricaturist, draftsman, sculptor, printmaker, teacher and columnist.
He attended a painting course in Badia Polesine, Italy, in 1907, while completing his primary education. He enlisted in the Italian Navy during the First World War (1914 - 1918), interrupting his studies. Between 1921 and 1927, he traveled through several European countries, and in Italy he studied painting in Venice and at the Scuola Rossi in Bologna. He came to Brazil in 1927. He stayed for some time in São Paulo, where, besides working as an illustrator and caricaturist for newspapers, he made panels and frescoes for shops and residences. In 1929, he moved to Paraná, settled in Curitiba, and met the teacher Theodoro de Bona (1904 - 1990) and the painter Alfredo Andersen (1860 - 1935). In 1946, he worked alongside Poty (1924 - 1998) on the illustrations for the magazine Joaquim. He worked at art institutions such as the Ateliê/Escola de Desenho e Pintura Guido Viaro and the Escola de Música e Belas Artes do Paraná, in Curitiba. The Museu Guido Viaro was inaugurated in the capital of Paraná in 1975. In 1996, the video Impressões de Guido Viaro [Impressions of Guido Viaro], directed by Carlos Henrique Tulio, was released. The following year, the exhibition Guido Viaro 100 Anos [Guido Viaro 100 Years] brought together the work of Paraná artists in tribute to the centenary of his birth.
Critical Commentary
Guido Viaro began drawing and painting in Italy, but it was in Brazil that he developed most of his output. He is considered a renewer of modern painting in Paraná. His works reveal an affinity with Expressionism, above all in the drama and poetic tone with which he portrays the human figure. The artist stands out for his extensive graphic production. Among his most recurrent themes are popular types engaged in everyday activities, with a strong documentary sense, as in Lavadeiras [Washerwomen] (1960), or in the series of etchings depicting markets, Roma camps, card games and festivities, among other subjects.
The artist also devoted himself to religious works, in both printmaking and painting. Some of these canvases recall Renaissance frescoes and are marked by a strong presence of drawing. He also painted several portraits, such as that of the painter Miguel Bakun (1909 - 1963). Alongside his artistic production, he was concerned with art and education. He created an art school for children, a pioneering initiative in Brazil, and during his long teaching career trained new generations of artists in Paraná.
Critiques
"Throughout his work, with his likewise expressive drawing and figurative style, Viaro focused on a social theme that sought to value the human being. This is what set him apart from the members of the 'Família' (Família Artística Paulista), bringing him closer to Clóvis Graciano, (...) who broke away from the pattern of the members of that group, overcoming regionalism, the interpretation of one's own surroundings, and giving his work a social focus. He had very expressive drawing and was always figurative".
Tereza Cristina Lunardelli Ramos
RAMOS, Tereza Cristina Lunardelli. A importância de Guido Viaro no meio cultural e artístico do Paraná. 1984. Dissertação (Mestrado em Artes) - Escola de Comunicações e Artes - ECA/USP, São Paulo, 1984.
Solo Exhibitions
1941 - Curitiba PR - Solo, at Sociedade Dante Alighieri
1945 - São Paulo SP - Solo, at Galeria Nigri
1946 - Curitiba PR - Solo, at Escola Normal de Curitiba
1948 - Curitiba PR - Solo, at Escola de Música e Belas Artes do Paraná
1953 - Curitiba PR - Solo, at Biblioteca Pública do Paraná
1969 - Curitiba PR - Solo, at Biblioteca Pública do Paraná
Group Exhibitions
1933 - Curitiba PR - Paraná Salon of the Sociedade de Artistas do Paraná
1942 - Curitiba PR - Paraná Salon of the Sociedade de Artistas do Paraná - bronze medal
1944 - Curitiba PR - 1st Paraná Fine Arts Salon, at Escola de Professores
1947 - Curitiba PR - 4th Paraná Fine Arts Salon, at Edifício do Orfeão da Escola Normal de Curitiba - silver medal
1948 - Curitiba PR - 5th Paraná Fine Arts Salon, at Escola de Música e Belas Artes do Paraná
1951 - Curitiba PR - 8th Paraná Fine Arts Salon, at Departamento de Cultura. Sala de Exposições - gold medal and acquisition prize
1952 - Curitiba PR - 9th Paraná Fine Arts Salon, at Departamento de Cultura - travel prize
1952 - Curitiba PR - Spring Salon - gold medal
1953 - Curitiba PR - Guido Viaro and Nelson Luz, at Escola de Música e Belas Artes do Paraná
1953 - Curitiba PR - Spring Salon - hors-concours
1954 - Curitiba PR - Spring Salon - hors-concours
1954 - Goiânia GO - Exhibition of the National Congress of Intellectuals
1956 - Curitiba PR - Paraná Fine Arts Salon - acquisition prize
1957 - Curitiba PR - Paraná Fine Arts Salon - acquisition prize
1957 - São Paulo SP - Pintores do Paraná [Painters from Paraná], at MAM/SP
1958 - Porto Alegre RS - Exhibition, at Salão Pan-Americano de Arte
1960 - Porto Alegre RS - 1st Farroupilha Salon - silver medal
1961 - Curitiba PR - Paraná Fine Arts Salon - acquisition prize
1963 - Curitiba PR - 20th Paraná Fine Arts Salon, at Biblioteca Pública do Paraná - acquisition prize
1963 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Guido Viaro and Fernando Calderari, at Galeria GEAD
1964 - Porto Alegre RS - Pintores Contemporâneos do Paraná [Contemporary Painters from Paraná], at Margs
1965 - Curitiba PR - 1st Cidade de Curitiba Visual Arts Salon
1965 - Curitiba PR - Spring Salon
1966 - Curitiba PR - 23rd Paraná Fine Arts Salon, at Biblioteca Pública do Paraná
1966 - Londrina PR - 2nd Brazilian Religious Art Salon
1967 - Curitiba PR - Retrospective, at Biblioteca Pública do Paraná
1967 - Londrina PR - 3rd Brazilian Religious Art Salon - hors-concours
1968 - Curitiba PR - 25th Paraná Salon, at Biblioteca Pública do Paraná
1968 - Curitiba PR - 2nd Salon of the Student Union of the Escola de Música e Belas Artes do Paraná
1970 - Londrina PR - Mostra de Arte Olimpíada [Olympiad Art Exhibition] - gold medal
Posthumous Exhibitions
1971 - Curitiba PR - 28th Paraná Salon, at Biblioteca Pública do Paraná
1972 - Curitiba PR - 29th Paraná Fine Arts Salon. Gold Room
1975 - Curitiba PR - Solo, at Museu Guido Viaro
1977 - Brasília DF - Solo, at Palácio Buriti
1977 - Cuiabá MT - Solo, at Palácio da Instrução
1977 - Florianópolis SC - Solo, at Palácio Barriga Verde
1977 - Porto Alegre RS - Solo, at Margs
1977 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Solo, at MNBA
1977 - São Paulo SP - Solo, at Paço das Artes
1982 - Curitiba PR - Solo, at Museu Guido Viaro
1982 - São Paulo SP - Italian Painters in Brazil, at MAM/SP
1984 - São Paulo SP - Tradition and Rupture: A Synthesis of Brazilian Art and Culture, at Fundação Bienal
1985 - Curitiba PR - Viaro Desconhecido [Unknown Viaro], at Museu Guido Viaro
1985 - São Paulo SP - 18th São Paulo International Biennial, at Fundação Bienal
1986 - Curitiba PR - Mostra Retrospectiva de Guido Viaro [Guido Viaro Retrospective], at Museu Guido Viaro
1986 - Curitiba PR - Paranaenses mais premiados nas 42 edições do Salão Paranaense [Most Awarded Paraná Artists in the 42 Editions of the Salão Paranaense], at MAC/PR
1986 - Curitiba PR - Tradition/Contradiction, at MAC/PR
1986 - Curitiba PR - Três Talentos [Three Talents], at Galeria Ida e Anita
1987 - Curitiba PR - 1st National Religious Art Salon, at Museu de Arte do Paraná
1987 - Curitiba PR - Guido Viaro-Exposição do Acervo [Guido Viaro - Collection Exhibition], at Museu Guido Viaro
1988 - Curitiba PR - Exposição do Acervo da Fundação Cultural de Curitiba [Exhibition of the Fundação Cultural de Curitiba Collection], at Museu Guido Viaro
1988 - Curitiba PR - Gravadores Paranaenses das Décadas de 50/60 [Paraná Printmakers of the 1950s/60s]. Special Room, at Museu Municipal de Arte
1988 - Curitiba PR - Mostra Inaugural do Museu Municipal de Arte de Curitiba [Inaugural Exhibition of the Museu Municipal de Arte de Curitiba], at Centro Cultural do Portão
1989 - Adelaide (Australia) - Paintings From The Overseas Sister Cities
1989 - Charleroi (Belgium) - Paintings From The Overseas Sister Cities
1989 - Curitiba PR - 2nd National Religious Art Salon, at PUC/Curitiba
1989 - Curitiba PR - O Autorretrato na Pintura Paranaense [The Self-Portrait in Paraná Painting], at Museu de Arte do Paraná
1989 - Curitiba PR - Paintings From The Overseas Sister Cities
1989 - Himeji (Japan) - Paintings From The Overseas Sister Cities, at Himeji City Museum of Art
1989 - Phoenix (United States) - Paintings From The Overseas Sister Cities
1989 - Taiwan (China) - Paintings From The Overseas Sister Cities
1990 - Curitiba PR - 15 Anos de Consolidação do Museu Guido Viaro [15 Years of Consolidation of the Museu Guido Viaro]
1990 - Curitiba PR - Viaro, at Museu Guido Viaro
1990 - Goiânia GO - 20 Anos do Museu de Arte de Goiânia [20 Years of the Museu de Arte de Goiânia], at Museu de Arte
1991 - Curitiba PR - A Gravura Expressionista de Guido Viaro [The Expressionist Prints of Guido Viaro], at Museu da Gravura de Curitiba
1991 - Curitiba PR - Guido Viaro. A Arte e a Criança [Guido Viaro. Art and the Child], at Museu Alfredo Andersen
1991 - Curitiba PR - Museu Municipal de Arte: Collection, at Museu Municipal de Arte
1992 - Curitiba PR - 10th Curitiba City Printmaking Show/America Show, at Museu da Gravura
1992 - Curitiba PR - Três Gravuristas [Three Printmakers], at Museu Alfredo Andersen
1992 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - A Gravura Expressionista de Guido Viaro [The Expressionist Prints of Guido Viaro]
1993 - Curitiba PR - Raças do Paraná: Visão de Guido Viaro [Peoples of Paraná: Guido Viaro's Vision], at Museu Guido Viaro
1993 - Curitiba PR - Viaro: Reflexos na Arte Paranaense [Viaro: Reflections in Paraná Art], at Museu Guido Viaro
1993 - João Pessoa PB - Woodcut: From Cordel to the Gallery, at Fundação Espaço Cultural da Paraíba
1994 - São Paulo SP - Bienal Brasil Século XX, at Fundação Bienal
1994 - São Paulo SP - Woodcut: From Cordel to the Gallery, at Metrô
1995 - Curitiba PR - 50 Anos do Salão Paranaense de Belas-Artes [50 Years of the Salão Paranaense de Belas-Artes], at MAC/PR
1996 - Curitiba PR - Guido Viaro: pequena mostra de arte religiosa [Guido Viaro: A Small Exhibition of Religious Art], at Museu de Arte do Paraná
1996 - Curitiba PR - Momentos Especiais de Guido Viaro [Special Moments of Guido Viaro], at PUC/PR
1997 - Curitiba PR - Contemporary Printmaking, at Museu Metropolitano de Arte de Curitiba
1997 - Curitiba PR - Guido Viaro, uma lição de arte: exposição de pintura [Guido Viaro, a Lesson in Art: Painting Exhibition], at Museu de Arte do Paraná
1997 - Curitiba PR - Guido Viaro. 100 Anos: interpretação 97 [Guido Viaro. 100 Years: Interpretation 97], at Museu de Arte do Paraná
1997 - Curitiba PR - Guido Viaro: o talento do mestre [Guido Viaro: The Master's Talent], at Escola de Música e Belas-Artes do Paraná
1998 - Curitiba PR - Arte Paranaense: movimento de renovação [Paraná Art: Renewal Movement], at Conjunto Cultural da Caixa
2000 - Curitiba PR - 12th Curitiba Printmaking Exhibition: Marcas do Corpo, Dobras da Alma [Body Marks, Soul Folds]
2000 - Curitiba PR - Exposição Acervo BADEP [BADEP Collection Exhibition], at Secretaria do Estado de Educação
2001 - Rio de Janeiro RJ - Brazilian Watercolor, at Centro Cultural Light
2003 - São Paulo SP - Art and Society: A Controversial Relationship, at Itaú Cultural
2004 - Curitiba PR - The Paraná Landscape and Its Painters, at Casa Andrade Muricy
Source: Itaú Cultural
