Through The Hermit—Rediscovering António Dacosta's lost painting

Abstract

The radiography performed on the painting There Is No Yes without a No—The Hermit (1985) by António Dacosta revealed one of his lost works. The last and only record of the lost painting is a black and white photograph taken during the exhibition L'Artiste du Mois at Centre Culturel Portugais de la Fondation Calouste Gulbenkian in Paris, 1985. The chromatic reconstruction of the artwork would be of extreme importance for its dissemination as it was conceived. For this purpose, portable x-ray fluorescence analyses were carried out directly on the paintings for preliminary elemental identification and to determine the most favorable sampling areas for μ-Raman and SEM–EDS evaluation. Cross sections were observed under optical microscope for better discernment of the chromatic layers used in each painting. In both artworks, titanium white (rutile), Mars red, Mars black, ultramarine blue, phthalocyanine blue and dioxazine violet were identified. Mars yellow and Mars black were found on superficial layers from the latest painting; phthalocyanine green, chrome-based green and cadmium red/orange was found on deeper layers, belonging to the hidden painting.