Lewis, Roberto (1874–1949)
Lewis, Roberto (1874–1949)
Roberto Lewis (b. 1874; d. 1949), Panamanian painter. In the 1890s, Lewis studied under Albert Dubois and Leon Bonnat in Paris, where he was later named Panamanian consul (1904–1912). Upon returning to Panama, he became director of the Academia Nacional de Pintura from its founding until the late 1930s.
Lewis is well known for the official neoclassical paintings with which he decorated the interiors of public buildings such as the Teatro Nacional, the Palacio de Gobierno, and the Presidencia. He also painted many portraits, including all of the national presidents from 1904 to 1948. Unlike the academic portraits, Lewis's landscapes, including the famous Tamarindos de Taboga (1936), are characterized by the luminous colors and lively brush-work which reflect the influence of post-impressionism on his style.
See alsoArt: The Twentieth Century .
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Rodrigo Miró, "Lewis, Amador, Ivaldi," in Revista Lotería, no. 219 (May 1974): 72-80.
P. Prados, Exposición Maestros-Maestros (1987).
Additional Bibliography
Rajer, Anton. París en Panamá: Roberto Lewis y la historia de sus obras restauradas en el Teatro Nacional de Panamá. Menasha: Banta Book Publishing Corporation; Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 2005.
Monica E. Kupfer