To mark the 100th birth anniversary of Padma Vibhushan awardee, the late Mário Miranda, his close friend Aristides Alvares will showcase works from his collection. He shares his memories of his association with the artist with NT BUZZ
CHRISTINE MACHADO
It was in the early 1990s that Aristides Alvares first met Mário Miranda in person. As their acquaintance grew, Alvares, who does the restoration and manufacturing of Indo-Portuguese furniture, undertook some work at the artist’s home, where he got a glimpse of the sheer range of Miranda’s work.
“Here was a man who was doing everything: cartoons, illustrations, sketches, caricatures, paintings, portraits. The more I looked, the more engrossed I became,” recalls Alvares. He adds that Miranda’s caricatures captured emotion and character without the need for words.
While Miranda initially gifted him an artwork, Alvares gradually began acquiring more pieces and over time, built a substantial collection, including the complete ‘Goa with Love’ series. “I bought the originals and the copyrights. These were originally in black and white but he had always wanted to render them in colour, which he later did for some of them,” he says.
Speaking about the late artist’s love for Goa, Alvares says, “He would travel with me to various villages and everywhere he went, he sketched.” He also played an important role in bringing the team of the iconic movie ‘The Sea Wolves’ to Goa and guiding them to filming locations. Miranda produced several drawings of places such as Hotel Republica, Singbal Book House and the High Court that were locations chosen for the film. “In fact, I have a major part of this collection of artworks which relate to Goa,” he notes.
Though best known for his Goa sketches, Miranda also created extensive work inspired by his travels to various places like Mumbai, Diu, Macao, Japan, Israel, Australia, Germany, London, Spain, France, and Portugal. In fact, Alvares was instrumental in organising the two-week tour to Spain. Some of these artwork collections later became books, including ‘Germany in Wintertime’, which Alvares republished in 2009. “His book on New York was also remarkable – the caricatures, the landscapes,” he says, adding that Miranda also helped take Francis Newton and M. F. Hussain to New York.
Miranda received several prestigious honours over the years. Alvares recalls being present when the artist was awarded the Order of Isabella the Catholic, one of Spain’s highest civilian honours, at his home in Loutolim. This was followed by the Commander of the Order of Prince Henry conferred by Portugal.
Among his many projects, Miranda also illustrated Bal Bharati textbooks for primary school students.
Now, to mark his 100th birth anniversary, Alvares will present a selection of sketches, caricatures, illustrations, paintings and cartoons dating back to 1950. The exhibition will be held on May 2 at Sala Gaspar, Clube de Tennis de Gaspar Dias, Miramar, and is by invitation only.
“The government had planned a museum for Mário Miranda at the Adil Shah Palace but since it didn’t materialise in time, I felt I had to do something to honour him on his 100th birthday,” says Alvares. So, together with a group of friends, he organised this celebration and exhibition. Initially planned for the Smart City Complex in Panaji, the show was later moved to Clube de Tennis de Gaspar Dias due to logistical and security concerns.
“Around 80 pieces will be displayed. Most focus on covering the lifestyle and culture of Goa, as well as issues like mining and hill cutting. There will also be works from other countries,” he adds.
This will be a one-day exhibition. “The next time these may be seen is in the museum,” says Alvares, who is determined to see it realised. With Miranda having been posthumously awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 2012, the second highest civilian award in India, Alvares now hopes that the artist will also be soon posthumously awarded the highest honour – Bharat Ratna.
Looking ahead, Alvares would love to expand his collection, particularly with works on New York, Portugal, France, and Germany. “I have only a few drawings of Israel, and my England set is also limited,” he adds.
