Júlio (Saúl Dias)

Saúl Dias (1902 – 1983) was born in Vila do Conde, Portugal. He attended the School of Fine Arts of Oporto but graduated in Civil Engineering, a profession he practiced during the course of his life. The engineering activity did not keep him away from drawing, painting and composing poetry, having also illustrated several books from José Régio, his brother. His first individual exhibition was hel in 1935 at the National Society of Fine Arts, and participated in the Modern Independent Artists, the following year, side by side with Almada Negreiros and Vieira da Silva, under the pseudonym Júlio. Throughout his artistic career he held exhibitions in Sao Paulo, and in several museums and institutions, such as the Soares dos Reis Museum, in Estremoz, and the Gulbenkian Foundation, among others. In 2008, the Museums of Vila do Conde and Estremoz organized an exhibition evocative of the 25 years of his death.