Audio
Conference

Artists Seeking Refuge from Nazism in London and Lisbon

Talks about British Art

In the context of the exhibition 'British Art – Vanishing Point', Sarah MacDougall and Inês Fialho Brandão tell us how the experience of artists who were forced to emigrate due to the rise of Nazism is expressed in identity, involvement with the war and the processes of integrating new art markets.

26 Aug 2025 45 min

Talks about British Art

Sarah MacDougall explores the reception, contacts and mutual artistic influence of figures such as Peter Lazlo Peri (1899–1967), Kurt Schwitters (1887–1948) and Oskar Kokoschka (1886–1980) in London. By focusing on the time spent in the city and the migratory circuits of these artists, she helps us contextualise their works in a period marked by a lessening in artistic influence, related to increased insecurity, thus demanding a focused and integrated reading.

Inês Fialho Brandão tells us how the brief presence of artists such as Wanda Ostrowska (1933–1994) and Moïse Kisling (1891–1953) left neither trace nor memory in the city of Lisbon, while others like Gretchen Wohlwill (1878–1962) and Max Braumann (1880–1969) managed to permeate the art scene.

In the audio recording shared here, Sarah MacDougall and Inês Fialho Brandão present their reading of the life and work of these artists in a period shaped by the war experience, emphasising the artistic path they chose to follow instead of the pre-established routes, in their condition as emigrants.

Series

Talks about British Art

Gatherings around the exhibition ‘British Art – Convergence’ that promote talks about the networks resulting from the flow of artists and cultural agents between Portugal and the United Kingdom.

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