Artistic education in
Porto began with the establishment of a public drawing and design class initiated in 1780 by a 1779 decree of
Queen Maria I. The classes took place in the afternoons at the city's orphanage for boys. This had a particular utilitarian aim of "promoting the study of fine arts, disseminating, and applying its practice to the manufacturing arts". In 1802, when there were already 120 students enrolled, the painter,
Vieira Portuense, called this drawing class an "Academy", thus attempting to increase the status of the institution and steer it towards offering a more complete artistic education supported by theoretical studies. However, the desired reform would only take place on 22 November 1836, after the Liberal Revolution and the
Portuguese Civil War, with the creation by the MInister of Education,
Passos Manuel, of the Porto Academy of Fine Arts, housed in the building of the
Convent of Santo António da Cidade. Now under the guidance of
João Baptista Ribeiro, founder of the Porto Museum in 1833, the academy offered classes in the areas of painting, sculpture and architecture, and also a preparatory course in drawing. It was open to all children over ten years old. In 1911, the academy gave rise to the Porto School of Fine Arts, following a reform that reorganized the schools of fine arts in
Lisbon and Porto. In 1933, it was installed in the Palacete do Braguinha. From 1950, it became the Higher School of Fine Arts, being then integrated into the national education system. From then, training in ceramics, stained glass, tapestry, engraving, and stonework were introduced. The faculty houses
Leonardo da Vinci's drawing "Young Woman Washing a Child's Feet", from 1480, a very small work (185 by 114 mm) done in pen and brown ink. ==Teachers==