Artists of Puerto Rico: José Campeche and Francisco Oller
A look at the lives and works of two of Puerto Rico's most famous painters.
Modern Puerto Rico is home to thousands of artists, writers, and musicians who share their views and talents with the world. But long before the abundance of the digital age, Puerto Rican artists were already influencing the global art scene. Two of its most famous early painters are still remembered today: José Campeche and Francisco Oller.
José Campeche (1751-1809)
José Campeche y Jordán was a multitalented artist who is best remembered today for his rococo-style paintings. Born in San Juan, Campeche was of Afro-Caribbean ancestry. His father, Tomás Campeche y Rivafrecha, was born into slavery but gained his freedom by José’s birth. José’s mother, María Jordán y Marqués, hailed from the Spanish Canary Islands.
Tomás Campeche’s father worked in painting and restoration, usually for religious patrons, which likely encouraged his son’s talents in the arts. In addition, Campeche appears to have benefited from the tutelage of Luis Paret y Alcázar, an exiled Spanish court painter. Besides painting, José Campeche also explored music and the construction of musical instruments.
Campeche was not the first artist of Puerto Rico, but he is remembered as the first Puerto Rican painter to receive international notice. He primarily painted religious subjects and portraits for the political elite of the day.
Francisco Oller (1833-1917)
Francisco Oller, born nearly a century after Campeche, played an influential role in the emerging impressionist movement. Born to two wealthy parents, Oller studied art from an early age, moving from San Juan to Madrid to Paris as a young man. But even as he traveled abroad, Oller’s paintings frequently returned to scenes of life in Puerto Rico. As he transitioned from realism to impressionism, Oller confronted not only the beauty of his homeland, but also the realities of a Caribbean island where slavery was still practiced until 1873.
Over his long career, Oller both produced paintings and taught new students, which made him one of the most influential Caribbean painters of all time. Today, his works are admired not only for their beauty, but for their frank depictions of life in Puerto Rico during a pivotal moment in its history.
References
“Brooklyn Museum: Impressionism and the Caribbean: Francisco Oller and His Transatlantic World.” Brooklyn Museum, www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/francisco_oller. Accessed 25 Feb. 2021.
Smithsonian American Art Museum. “José Campeche y Jordán.” Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian Institution, americanart.si.edu/artist/jose-campeche-y-jordan-7194. Accessed 25 Feb. 2021.
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