Monday, December 26, 2011

Theatre in Portugal II

Set of stamps
Souvenir sheet I
Souvenir sheet II
First Day Cover with stamps
Garrett represents the introduction of romanticism in Portuguese theatre, but more than that, he indisputably opened the gates to the whole structure of stage and dramaturgy modernization through his writing but also through the institutions for the promotion of theatre and theatrical activities which he created, in an adequately articulated perspective as regards functionality and complementarity: The Teatro Nacional (the company and later also the building), the Conservatório de Arte Dramática, dramaturgy contests, the Inspecção Geral de Teatros e Espectáculos, copyrights and even a subsidy system.
All of them, duly modernized, still exist until this day. But more than that, Garrett’s own dramaturgy – of an exceptional level, despite fluctuations – brought to Portugal, from the onset of the vigorous romanticism, a style and a school, in some cases of outstanding quality, that fed both our literature and our stages for almost a century. Even poets and novelists, who did not focus on theatre, owe to him the renovation of style and content that to this day still deserves highlighting. Camilo is a clear example.
However, it was D. João da Câmara, at the passing of the century, who marked the beginning of a realistic school that still subsist, coexisting, with full quality and timeliness, with more modern currents that also marked and still mark Portuguese theatre, from symbolism to modernism, from expressionism to epic theatre and to theatre of the absurd.
From the beginning of the 19th century, modernist or symbolist, authors such as Almada Negreiros, António Patrício or even Fernando Pessoa (a sporadic playwright) deserve highlighting; as well as prevalently (but not only) realist authors, such as Carlos Selvagem or Ramada Curto; or even Alfredo Cortez, who with Gladiadores introduced expressionism, among others.
They ruled the Portuguese scene, especially in the first half of the 20th Century, leaving continuity in names and notable works, as it is the case with José Régio or Bernardo Santareno, but also authors like Luís Francisco Rebello, Miguel Torga, Luís de Sttau Monteiro, Paço d’ Arcos, Cardoso Pires or in more recent times, Mário Cláudio, Mário de Carvalho, Luísa Costa Gomes, Fernando Dacosta, Norberto Ávila, Diogo Freitas do Amaral, Abel Neves, Isabel Medina, Jacinto Lucas Pires…
Régio and Santareno, each one in his own way, symbolized the transition in Portuguese Theatre from a realistic line with poetic references, in a comprehensive sense, to a dramaturgic conception marked by the conciliation between a traditional poetic-dramatic mix and a spirited affirmation of modernity, both from the stylistic point of view, but above all by the criticism of the contents: the plays are profoundly critical and profoundly modern, even when taking place in more distant times or in fantasy situations.
But more than providing a mere list of names, it is important to underline the aesthetic and stylistic renewal towards modernity which these dramatists imprinted on Portuguese theatre. It is furthermore interesting to see how Portuguese theatre, within the constraints that cyclically have influenced dramaturgic production and performing arts since the 19th century, was able to mirror the evolution of society, of attitudes and thought, of culture and art, from Garrett to the present day.
 It should also be mentioned that, mainly after the end of the 19th century, theatre–show in Portugal gained relevance and quality, following the brilliant actors, stage directors and other scene artists who marked the regeneration of our theatrical art. Names like José Anastácio Rosa and João Rosa, Eduardo Brazão and Rosa Damasceno, Amélia Rey Colaço and Augusto Figueiredo, Armando Cortez, Rogério Paulo and Laura Alves, Ruy de Carvalho, Cármen Dolores, Eunice Muñoz and Raul Solnado, among hundreds of other great names of the stage who have assured the continuity of this art, which sometimes is so poorly cherished and understood among us!

Technical Details
Date of Issue: 08.09.2011
Values: stamps of €0,32, €0,32, €0,47, €0,68, €0,80 and €1.00 and two miniature sheets with two stamps of €1.00 each
Designer: Atelier Acácio Santos / Túlio Coelho
Printer: Joh. Enschedé
Process: 4-colour offset lithography
Size: stamps 40.0 mm x 30.6 mm
Souvenir sheet 95 x 125 mm
Perforation: Cross of Christ 13 x 13
Paper: White TR CPST331 110g/m2
Watermark:
Sheet: sheets of 50 stamps

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

LATVIA – Cover from Riga, Latvia to Braga, Portugal


First day cover of the Christmas and New Year of the Dragon stamps issue posted on December, 2 2011.
Reference to the blue cancellation ‘"Priecīgus svētkus" ("Season's Greetings" in Latvian) in use at the Latvian Post stand located on Cathedral Square in Riga.
(Special thanks to my best friend Juris Tarvids)


Monday, December 19, 2011

Archaeology in Portugal

Set of stamps

Souvenir sheet

First Day Cover
Signs of human presence are preserved in our familiar landscapes, relics of times before the creation of Portugal and of its frequently evoked eight centuries of history. We pay tribute to Portuguese archaeology, because it is through archaeological methods that these pieces from a distant part of a history we share are released from the ground. In this philatelic issue you will find the rock engravings from the Côa Valley that holds some of the oldest expressions of human art which, since then, has not ceased to manifest itself in different ways; the large megalithic constructions, monuments to the dead, built and used by living communities of farmers; or the castors, walled hill settlements, found in the northwest of Portugal, where the influences of a Mediterranean urbanism, with a rectilinear street layout, blend with ancient local traditions, such as circular plan houses or typical public baths, with elements so profusely decorated that one of them, in the Citânia de Briteiros, quite justly was given the popular name of ‘pedra formosa’ (‘beautiful stone’); and the archaeological remains from the former roman province of Lusitania, with its cities, fields dotted with farms and its multiple architectural achievements, from abundantly coloured mosaic pavements to monumental constructions that defy the passing of the centuries, the old civilization of Italian farmers who found a sea of resources in this European finisterra that they explored extensively. All these places, evocative of the most distant past of the western part of the Iberian Peninsula, also play an important role in the history of archaeological research in our country. The megalithic structures, that always rouse curiosity owing to their striking presence in the rural landscapes, leading to various explanations as to their origin and function; the roman past, because it has, at all times, constituted one of the cultural moulds of the west; the castros, perched on the top of the hills and surrounded by stone walls, because they evoke resistance to external invasions and preserve a marked identity, even during roman dominion wherefore they are widely extolled in nationalistic speeches. And last but not least, because of its enormous impact and relevance, the art from the Côa Valley that literally revolutionized the conventional ideas on the subject of the oldest artistic manifestations from the Palaeolithic, which ceased to be regarded as images reserved for the inside of caves and shelters, to reveal themselves as exuberant outdoor expressions. Because the knowledge of the past is not the result of happenstance, but of persistent research, one cannot fail to evoke one of the ‘fathers” of Portuguese archaeology, José Leite de Vasconcelos, founder of the Museu Nacional de Arqueologia and author of an immense work which is also a priceless national heritage.

Technical Details
Date of Issue: 08.09.2011
Values: stamps of €0,32, €0,47, €0,68, €0,80 and €1.00 and one souvenir sheet with one stamp of €2.50
Designer: José Brandão / Susana Brito
Printer: Joh. Enschedé
Process: 4-colour offset lithography
Size: stamps 40.0 mm x 30.6 mm
Souvenir sheet 95 x 125 mm
Perforation: Cross of Christ 13 x 13
Paper: White TR CPST331 110g/m2
Watermark:
Sheet: sheets of 50 stamps

Sunday, December 18, 2011

FINLAND – Postcard from Kälviä, Finland to Braga, Portugal

 
Christmas postcard, posted on December,07 1 2011.
(Special thanks to my best friend Sini Linnanmäki)

Saturday, December 17, 2011

GEORGIA – Cover from Tiblissi, Georgia to Braga, Portugal

Registered cover and postcard with stamps posted on November, 22 2011
(Special thanks to my best friend Khatuna Kipiani)
Gelati Monastery Postcard
The Monastery of Gelati is a monastic complex near Kutaisi, Imereti, western Georgia. It contains the Church of the Virgin founded by the King of Georgia David the Builder in 1106, and the 13th-century churches of St George and St Nicholas.
The Gelati Monastery for a long time was one of the main cultural and intellectual centers in Georgia. It had an Academy which employed some of the most celebrated Georgian scientists, theologians and philosophers, many of whom had previously been active at various orthodox monasteries abroad or at the Mangan Academy in Constantinople. Among the scientists were such celebrated scholars as Ioane Petritsi and Arsen Ikaltoeli.
Due to the extensive work carried out by the Gelati Academy, people of the time called it "a new Hellas" and "a second Athos".
The Gelati Monastery has preserved a great number of murals and manuscripts dating back to the 12th-17th centuries. The Khakhuli triptych had also been enshrined at Gelati until being stolen in 1859.
In Gelati is buried one of the greatest Georgian kings, David the Builder. Near his grave are the gates of Ganja, which were taken as trophies by king Demetrius I in 1139.
In 1994, Gelati Monastery was recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The site was included in the 2008 World Monuments Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites by the World Monuments Fund to draw attention to deterioration caused by prolonged neglect.
(Source: Wikipedia)

Georgia 2010 - Europa 'International Year of Astronomy'
Georgia 2008 – King David IV
Russia 2009 – UNESCO world heritage historical and cultural complex in Solovetsky islands
The Ensemble of the Solovetsky Islands is a historic and architectural, natural, cultural, religious heritage of the country.
According to the General Assembly of UNESCO decision of December 14, 1992, Cultural and Historic Ensemble of the Solovetsky Islands is included into the World Heritage list.
The stamps of the block represent: Sviato-Troitsky skit (XVII cen.), Sviato-Sergievsky skit (XIX cen.), Solovetsky monastery (XV cen.), Church of Apostle Andrey Pervozvanny (XVIII cen.).

Chile 2001 – Isla de Pascua (World Heritage Site by UNESCO)