Entre telas e diplomacia: a Questão Christie de Victor Meirelles

Abstract

This thesis focuses on the painting Questão Christie by Victor Meirelles, dated 1864 and currently held in the collection of the Museu Nacional de Belas Artes, in Rio de Janeiro. The unfinished artwork, little explored by historiography, depicts a singular episode of the Brazilian Second Reign: the Christie Question, a diplomatic conflict between Brazil and England that mobilized debates on sovereignty, foreign policy, and national identity. The study analyzes the composition, iconographic elements, and the emperor’s position in the scene, highlighting the tensions between the monarchy’s celebratory intention and the visual ambiguities presented by the canvas. At the same time, it considers the trajectory of the artwork and its relations with contemporary literary, theatrical, and graphic productions that also addressed the episode. It is demonstrated that the Christie Question went beyond diplomatic notes, becoming a cultural phenomenon. By circulating in newspapers, on stages, and on canvases, the episode contributed to the construction of representations of Brazil, allowing a rethinking of the relations between foreign policy, culture, and national identity in the Second Reign.