São Tomé das Letras

Location
São Tomé das Letras, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil
Date
1876
Materials
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
52.2 x 92 cm
Credit
Museu Nacional de Belas Artes, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Locate on map View in timeline About the artist

Nicolau Facchinetti was one of the most respected artists to work and teach in Rio de Janeiro in the 1800s. On the back of his canvases, he always noted the location of the view and who had commissioned it, and also emphasized that his landscapes were “faithfully painted from nature.” To make his scenes more believable, Facchinetti would often insert himself into his paintings: in this one, we can see the artist in the foreground taking shelter under a makeshift covering while painting.