Midsession, Art and D.C.

Through the foresight of Tereza Neves and the generosity of President Dobelle, an eclectic assortment of Trinity students attended a showing of the artwork of Amadeo deSouza-Cardoso at the Corcoran Gallery in Washington, D.C. On Saturday morning October 9, 1999, twenty-eight of the thirty-six students who had reserved a spot for this trip spread throughout a luxurious tour bus and headed for D.C. The trip was coordinated through the efforts of Tereza Neves, Portuguese lecturer in the Department of Modern Languages. Ms. Neves is here through the Institute of Camoes Portugal. Together with Cristina Santos (President), Caterina Inacio (Vice-president), Durate Machado (Treasurer), and Christine Portal (Secretary) - the officers of what will be Trinity's first Portuguese Club-Ms. Neves offered an impressive extracurricular activity.

After boarding the bus, Ms Neves handed each of us detailed maps of downtown D.C., along with our itinerary and a brief biography of deSouza-Cardoso. She circulated an art book containing deSouza-Cardoso's works. Even at seven o'clock in the morning, conversation was animated as we prepared for a weekend away from college. Eight hours later we checked into our hotel and headed to the National Mall. After an hour of glimpsing art exhibits at the Smithsonian, we boarded our bus for an illuminated tour of the Washington Monuments. We were provided with a professional tour guide. We toured from the White House to the Lincoln Memorial, from the Jefferson Memorial to the Washington Monument, from the Reflection Pool to the War Memorials. The greatest impact on our group came with the reverent introspection that has to accompany a viewing of the Vietnam Veterans' Memorial and the Korean War Veterans' Memorial. The spot- lighted, life-sized statutes of nineteen young men in full battle gear-capes flaring and weapons ready-gave an eerie appearance. One student commented, "it was like watching a frozen ballet." Another student was ambivalent about a "terrible scene being made to look, somehow, lovely." After the tour, we went back to the hotel and were awake and ready by nine o'clock the next morning for our featured event-a viewing of the works of the Portuguese futurist Amadeo deSouza-Cardoso.

The Corcoran has displayed what remains of Amadeo deSouza-Cardoso's works. I say what remains of his work, because Amadeo's family, upon his untimely death from influenza at the age of thirty in 1918, started to destroy his paintings. They did not understand and appreciate his growing genius and were ashamed of some of his work. Fortunately, his wife was able to save a majority of the paintings, which she took with her to Paris. Amadeo was studying architecture in Paris in 1906 at the age of nineteen. His interest shifted at that time to a love of caricature, some of which the gallery had on display. His sensual lines and cubist beginnings were apparent, and it was only four years later when "a profound evolution" took place within him, for Amadeo discovered Cézanne. At that point his spirit took off, absorbing everything of art and culture around him. The ballet, Eastern art, African sculpture, and symbolism: Amadeo was affected by all of it. He was a friend with various great artists, such as Modigliani, and in contact with Picasso, Picabia, and Diego Rivera. His caricatures, sketches, and paintings held our attention for quite a while. Each painting was a kind of mystery that Amadeo dared you to interpret. At first, making out the form and substance in the cubist paintings was difficult. Without the placards beside each oil painting explaining the forms, it would not have been possible to make sense of many of the works. But gradually, as if a whisper were becoming stronger, we could hear the thought that was not actually buried in the painting, but layered into it. By slowly circling the room several times, the paintings took on a harmony of color and sense to our untrained eyes. Amadeo won all of us over with his clear, young voice that would have definitely gone on to be a major sound in the art world. The rest of Sunday was our free time. How did Trinity students spend five hours of free time away from school, away from discipline, away from structure? From what I saw, it was with maturity and a sense of humor. Several students went to the National Cathedral to attend mass. Others went to the Holocaust Museum, The Freer Museum, or the Smithsonian. The city happened to be holding A Taste of D.C. festival, and I saw two students dancing down the sidewalk, improvising a pretty impressive swing routine. Others went to the National Portrait Gallery or the National Air and Space Museum. Our trip concluded with dinner at the Hard Rock Café (adjacent to the Ford Theatre) compliments of the college. We were on the road and headed back at seven in the evening. Everyone stayed awake for the trip back until well past midnight, with conversations ranging from physics to family, and from genetics to computer games. President Dobelle gave us the funds with which to expand our knowledge. Tereza Neves gave us the opportunity. And the twenty-eight students who went on this trip also gave something; a solid example of what an education at Trinity College can provide and that is making the most of an historical event for the college. Barely six weeks in existence, the fledgling concept of a Portuguese Club took off on the first of what we hope will be many opportunities for intellectual and cultural advancement.