Tom' Thomaz de Mello

Thomaz de Mello (1906-1990), better known as Tom, was born in Rio de Janeiro and spent much of his life in Portugal. He arrived in Lisbon in 1926 with the theater company of Leopoldo Fróis. He explored various visual arts, ranging from painting and drawing to comics, caricature, tapestry, graphic design, interior design, ceramics, and others. He was part of the Portuguese modernist movement. In 1932, he was one of the founders of the UP modern art gallery in Lisbon. He was also a member of the group of artists from the National Propaganda Secretariat (later called the National Secretariat for Information, Popular Culture, and Tourism) that contributed to the arrangement of Portugal's pavilions at several international exhibitions. He collaborated with the Portuguese Dance Company Verde Gaio in the design of sets and costumes, and in 1948, he joined the team of decorator artists at the Museum of Popular Art, creating murals for various spaces.