His friend Cézanne called him "the first Impressionist". Camille Pissarro (Saint Thomas, Virgin Isles, 1830 - Paris, 1903) is, perhaps, the most crucial figure in Impressionism and, at the same time, the least-recognised member of the movement.
Along with another friend, Monet - whose success eclipsed his own - Pissarro gave initial impulse to the group of Impressionists. A key influence on Cézanne, Gauguin and Van Gogh, this great master inspired many pioneers of modern art.
The exhibition Pissarro sets out to restore his reputation and highlight his contribution, which goes beyond artistic creativity: championed the return to nature and the simple country life, and helped to stage group activities that pointed to a new way of understanding art, which resulted in the Impressionist exhibitions, conceived as alternatives to the official salons.
The exhibition, organised by the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum and ”la Caixa” Foundation, is the first and most complete retrospective of the work of Camille Pissarro ever presented in Spain. It features 67 oil paintings from throughout the painter's career, loaned by museums and private collectors around the world. This extraordinary body of works reconstructs the adventure of a pioneer in the world of art through the places he visited and the landscapes he painted in each, from his early days on the banks of the River Marne to the last years of his life, when he depicted the urban landscapes of Paris, Rouen and, finally, Le Havre.
The Pissarro exhibition will be open from October 16 2013 to January 26, 2014 at CaixaForum Barcelona (Av. de Francesc Ferrer i Guardia, 6-8). More information in the PDF press release