He first attended the Academy of Fine Arts (now part of the University of Lisbon), then went to Paris on a state scholarship in 1910. There, he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts. He also shared a studio with Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso and was introduced to Futurism by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti. An avowed Monarchist, after the 1910 Revolution he came into conflict with João Chagas, the Portuguese Ambassador, who was an even stronger advocate of Republicanism. This resulted in the loss of his scholarship.