Maturity
Throughout the 1930s, Botelho has several stays abroad, working on the Portuguese participation in major international exhibitions. He works on the Portugal pavilion at the International and Colonial Exhibition of Vincennes, Paris, 1930–31, and on the Portugal stand at the Lyon International Fair, 1935. From 1937 on he is a member, along with Bernardo Marques and Fred Kradolfer, of the SPN (Secretariat for National Propaganda) team of decorators charged with producing the Portugal pavilions at the exhibition of Paris, New York and San Francisco: International Exhibition of Arts and Techniques, Paris, 1937; 1939 New York World's Fair; Golden Gate International Exposition, San Francisco, California, 1939.
In 1930 he sets up in his studio in the Costa do Castelo, next to St George’s Castle, Lisbon, in the house that his wife, a primary education teacher, had a right to due to her position. The location of the house, where he lived until 1949, no doubt influenced his subject matter, providing him with subjects and references that marked his artistic career.
In 1937, during his stay in Paris, he visits a retrospective of the work of Van Gogh which leaves him "extremely impressed", strengthening the expressive violence of his painting; and he discovers Ensor on a brief visit to Flanders.
In 1938 he receives the Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso prize for the portrait of his father.
In 1939 he wins 1st Prize at the International Contemporary Art Exposition, San Francisco, USA, which allows him to buy the land and later build his house/studio in Buzano, Parede (near to Lisbon).
In 1940 he is a member of the decorating team for the Portuguese World Exhibition, Lisbon; and at the 5th Modern Art Exhibition, SPN, Lisbon, he receives the Columbano Prize.
In 1949 he is forced to leave the house in the Costa do Castelo, and he settles in Buzano.
From 1955 on he returns to Lisbon to live, now far from the historic centre, in the new neighborhood of Areeiro.
In 1969 he retires from his position in the Technical Services of the SNI (National Information Secretariat), Palácio Foz, where he had worked since the 1940s.
Read more about this topic: Carlos Botelho (painter)
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