José Leôncio de Araújo was born in Rio Casca (MG), in 1934. The grandson of clay producers, he started moulding animals as a child. Growing up, he went on to work the land like everyone else, and after moving to the city worked as a barber, carpenter and bricklayer. The eldest of many siblings, he was the last to try his hand at art. “When my brother Maurino became famous, the rest of us woke up. No one knew anything about art in the family. When my parents died, I went through bad times, and art helped me a lot. I was over 50 years old when I started sculpting, and still worked as a barber. I spent a year like that, alternating between jobs, until the shapes started to come out properly. Today I make a living from sculpture, even though it is hard.” The old barber’s chair remains in the front yard, which is where Leôncio works. Many sculptures seem to be piled up one on the top of the other. He explains: “Sometimes I don’t like what I make, so I leave them there, and start again, reworking them”.
JOSÉ LEÔNCIO DE
ARAÚJO
OUR LADY OF APARECIDA
Painted wood, 1.20 m tall
HEAD
Painted wood, 35 cm tall.
Piece being reworked
 
Belo Horizonte
Ouro Preto
Diamantina
Berilo
Araçuaí
Campo Alegre
Santana de Araçuaí
Itinga
Caraí
Sete Lagoas
Divinópolis
Montes Claros
Paraopeba
Pirapora
São João Del-Rei
Prados
Bichinhos
Tiradentes
Cachoeira do Brumado
 
North
Center West
Northeast
Southeast
South
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