João Timóteo da Costa


João Timóteo da Costa was an Afro-Brazilian painter and decorative artist.

Biography

His brother, Arthur Timótheo da Costa, was also a painter. They initially worked together as apprentices at the Brazilian Mint in Rio de Janeiro, where they designed stamps and created prints. He entered the Escola Nacional de Belas Artes in 1894, where his instructors included Rodolfo Amoedo, João Zeferino da Costa and Daniel Bérard.
He participated in the on numerous occasions after 1906, winning several prizes; including the small gold medal.
In 1911, together with his brother and the brothers and, he worked on decorating the Brazilian pavilion at the Turin International exhibition; remaining in Italy for more than a year.
Among his other notable decorative works were the headquarters of the Fluminense Football Club, the Noble Hall of the and murals at Copacabana Palace, all in Rio de Janeiro.
His brother went insane, dying prematurely in 1920, and his daughter died at the age of six. He never fully recovered from these tragedies and also became mentally ill. He died in 1932, in the ; the same psychiatric hospital where his brother had died.

Selected paintings