Sculptor Laranjeira Santos passed away at age 93

Portuguese sculptor José Laranjeira Santos passed away on Sunday, aged 93, at the University Hospital of Coimbra, where he had been admitted a few days ago due to health problems, a family source confirmed to Lusa. The wake is scheduled for Wednesday, from 4pm, at the São João de Deus Church, in Praça de Londres, in Lisbon. The funeral will take place on Thursday, with mass at 12:30 pm and departure from the chapel at 1:00 pm, heading to the Olivais crematorium.

Laranjeira Santos, born in Lisbon, dedicated a significant part of his life and work to the city of Figueira da Foz. He donated more than one hundred works of sculpture and drawing to the municipality, representing his artistic journey from the 1950s to the present day. The city of Figueira da Foz, where the sculptor took up residence, issued a note of regret and gratitude for "his love and generosity".
His artistic legacy is on display at the Núcleo de Arte Contemporânea Laranjeira Santos (NACLS), opened in 2020 in the redeveloped Castelo Engenheiro Silva, one of the most emblematic buildings in the city.
Maria do Céu Vasconcelos, daughter-in-law of the sculptor and trained designer, revealed that a book and an exhibition about the life and work of Laranjeira Santos are being prepared, projects in which the sculptor himself was involved. The opening of the exhibition, originally planned for May, is now scheduled for September this year, at a location yet to be determined in Lisbon.
According to Maria do Céu Vasconcelos, although the sculptor has several exhibition catalogues, there is still no comprehensive compilation that brings together all of his work, life and influences.

José Laranjeira Santos was born in Lisbon, on September 24, 1930, studied at the Escola Superior de Belas Artes in 1951 and completed his degree in Sculpture in 1955. That same year, he was awarded by the National Academy of Fine Arts as the best student in the field. of Sculpture. In 1961, he received a scholarship from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, going to Italy, where he remained until 1963, obtaining another degree in Sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome.
Laranjeira Santos' work is present in several institutional, municipal and private collections, both in Portugal and abroad. Throughout his career, he received several national and international distinctions. In 2020, Figueira da Foz created NACLS, a tribute to his work.

Source: Observer