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Almeida, José de
(b Lisbon, 1700; d Lisbon, 1769). Portuguese sculptor. He was the leading Portuguese sculptor of the mid-18th century, although only a small part of his work can be identified. He was sent to Rome by John V to study under Carlo Monaldi. Traces of his apprenticeship with Monaldi can be seen in his treatment of crumpled drapery. Almeida is known to have won a prize in a papal contest in competition with Italian sculptors. He returned to Lisbon about 1728 and formed a workshop that became very successful; it was renowned at the time, although almost all the production has been lost. He was the first Portuguese sculptor to carve well in stone at a time when most work in that medium was executed by foreigners and when other Portuguese sculptors generally preferred to work in clay or wood. Almeida’s work in marble includes the statue of St Paul on the façade of the chapel of the Palácio das Necessidades, Lisbon. His marble statues of St Elizabeth and of St John the Baptist (begun in 1735), inside the portico of the chapel of Bemposta, later completed by Joaquim José de Barros Laborão, show the lightly agitated treatment of fabric that is characteristic of Almeida. These statues are hard and angular in character, and the presentation of the human body is rather lifeless, despite the accuracy of draughtsmanship.
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