"Descanso” (rest) – initially named "Ceifeiro” (reaper) – belongs to a set of works that Júlio Pomar painted on an aesthetic mission to Évora, in 1945. From this mission, Pomar painted "Gadanheiro”, "Retrato de um Camponês” (Évora) and a fragment of "Semeador” (private collection), which was destroyed by the artist.
Under the guidance of the National Academy of Fine Arts, these missions took place between 1937 and 1963, assembling finalists and recent graduates from Lisbon and Porto. Oddly, that year (1945), Pomar did not meet any of these conditions, as he was only attending the second year in Porto. Contrary to what would be expected, the artist revealed to be more interest in people than in the city. "Only Júlio Pomar did not take interest in the city, entirely wrapped by the men and his drama, a titanic struggle between life and the rebellious nature (…) It is the suffering and heroic man, moving on his own scene, who appears in all of his works, composing the other face of Alentejo, which had to be looked for outside the walls of the city”, wrote Mário Dionísio in Seara Nova.
Under the guidance of the National Academy of Fine Arts, these missions took place between 1937 and 1963, assembling finalists and recent graduates from Lisbon and Porto. Oddly, that year (1945), Pomar did not meet any of these conditions, as he was only attending the second year in Porto. Contrary to what would be expected, the artist revealed to be more interest in people than in the city. "Only Júlio Pomar did not take interest in the city, entirely wrapped by the men and his drama, a titanic struggle between life and the rebellious nature (…) It is the suffering and heroic man, moving on his own scene, who appears in all of his works, composing the other face of Alentejo, which had to be looked for outside the walls of the city”, wrote Mário Dionísio in Seara Nova.