4 – 6 de nov. de 2026
Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto
Fuso horário Europe/Lisbon

From Portuguese heritage to Impressionist colour: Caribbean light as a legacy in the works of Camille Pissarro

6 de nov. de 2026 14:30
20m
Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto

Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto

Via Panorâmica, s/n 4150-564 Porto Portugal
Comunicação | Paper Imagens e Contextos Imagens e contextos

Palestrante

Dr. Gabriela Benner (University of Porto)

Descrição

This study examines the family origins of Camille Pissarro, who was born in St. Thomas to parents of Portuguese Jewish descent, as well as the cultural legacy that influenced his artistic work. It argues that his non-European Caribbean roots were fundamental in shaping a distinctive colour palette, characterised by vibrant hues and intense light, in contrast to that of traditional European landscapes.
The article explores how this exotic influence shaped Pissarro’s unique approach within Impressionism, setting him apart from his Parisian contemporaries. By examining his early works in the Antilles and Venezuela, it demonstrates that tropical luminosity and ‘coloured light’ contributed a technical and sensory legacy to the Impressionist movement. Pissarro’s cultural hybridity was fundamental in enriching the Impressionist legacy with a pioneering perspective on colour, connecting his Luso-Caribbean heritage with the European avant-garde.

Nota biográfica | Short Bio

Dr Benner holds a PhD in Heritage Studies – Art History from the University of Porto, where she has been an independent researcher at CITCEM, the Centre for Transdisciplinary Research on Culture, Space and Memory at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Porto. She was the YISHAI SHAHAR visiting fellow in Jewish Art History at the Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies at the University of Oxford. Her research focuses on cultural heritage and the development of the iconography of alterity.

Palavras-chave | Keywords Camille Pissarro, Impressionism, Tropical Light, Sephardic Ancestry, Cultural Heritage

Autor

Dr. Gabriela Benner (University of Porto)

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