Art and craft: the career of the sculptor and foundryman Roque de Mingo in São Paulo in the first half of the 20th century

This paper analyzes the career of the sculptor and foundryman Roque de Mingo (1890-1972), who was active in São Paulo in the first decades of the 20th century. The text seeks to examine how he entered the artistic field in a way that was initially alien to academic institutions - as an artistic foundryman - until he gradually reached positions of power within this circuit. Our hypothesis is that the trajectory of this sculptor-foundryman reveals the expectations and conflicts experienced by these actors who, due to their humble social origins, had to approach the artistic world as craftsmen. In this way, they could guarantee an immediate income and, at the same time, frequent contact with artists and the practice of sculpture.

KEYWORDS
Roque de Mingo; artistic casting; sculpture