He registered in the Drawing class as Francisco Manoel Chaves de Bragança, adopting his mother's name.

Chaves Pinheiro died of heart problems on 19 October 1884 in Rio de Janeiro.

[1] Most of Chaves Pinheiro's work was made at the Academy starting with clay models that were then finished in plaster, bronze or iron with help from his students.

[1] In 1864 Chaves Pinheiro presented a model for a huge equestrian statue of the Emperor Pedro II of Brazil to be executed in bronze.

The model was presented at the Universal Exposition in Paris in 1867, but the project was not realized since Pedro II refused the honor, preferring that the money be spent on public education.