Antonio Augusto da Costa Mota

Costa Mota (tio)

António Augusto da Costa Mota , also Costa Mota (tio) , (* 1862 in Coimbra ; † May 26, 1930 in Lisbon ) was a Portuguese sculptor .

Live and act

António Augusto da Costa Mota first studied at the Escola Livre das Artes do Desenho in Coimbra, followed by a degree at the Escola de Belas Artes in Lisbon. He graduated as a sculptor in 1891. He had his first exhibition in 1891 and 1892 at the Grémio Artístico (Artists' Guild of Lisbon). His first significant work was the statue for Afonso de Albuquerque (1893) in Lisbon. He later exhibited at the Sociedade Nacional de Belas Artes (1901). There were even exhibitions abroad, for example in Rio de Janeiro (1908), Madrid (1912) and Paris (1922 to 1926 in various galleries and museums).

He was important as a naturalist and he created numerous sculptures , statues and busts of famous and historical figures of Portuguese history and culture: Bernardim Ribeiro (1897), Manuel Joaquim Pinheiro Chagas (1908), Sousa Martins (1907), Eduardo Coelho (1904), King Charles I of Portugal (undated), the statue "Justice" in front of the Parliament in Lisbon ( Assembleia da República ), Joaquim António de Aguiar (1912), the actor Taborda (1914), the playwright António Ribeiro , known as Chiado , ( 1925), José Malhoa (1927).

His most important - also internationally - works in 1894 were the two sarcophagi for the navigator and explorer Vasco da Gama and for the national poet Luís de Camões , which are now in the Jeronimos Monastery in Lisbon.

The Portuguese state awarded him the title of "Grand Master of Portuguese Sculpture". Costa Mota was the first Portuguese sculptor who could make a living from his art. His nephew, António Augusto da Costa Mota Sobrinho (called Costa Mota (Sobrinho), 1877-1956) was also a well-known sculptor in Portugal.

Awards (selection)

• Gold (1902) and Medal of Honor from the Sociedade Nacional de Belas Artes

swell

• Biography on the website of the Museu José Malhoa