Lectures and Talks

He was a mail sorter in Waco, Texas and the only American ever commissioned by Hermès.

For decades, Kermit Oliver worked the graveyard shift while creating scarf designs treasured worldwide.

A Portrait of a Postman reveals this astonishing dual life, a story of genius hidden in plain sight. But just as his art reaches its zenith, an unfathomable murder pushes Kermit into the darkness.

Would he ever paint again?

Winner of multiple honors, including three Dallas International Film Festival awards and  Best of the Best  at Martha s Vineyard, this haunting documentary explores the razor s edge between brilliance and isolation, and the life of a genius living in shadows. Filmmaker Christopher Charles Scott vividly chronicles Oliver s journey, featuring commentary from his family; art collector Tina Knowles; and colleagues such as art historian Alvia J. Wardlaw and artist Earlie Hudnall Jr.

Discover how the birth of Impressionism in music was ignited by Pissarro, the Father of Impressionism in visual art. Join beloved conductor and storyteller Scott O'Neil, host of CPR Classical's Behind the Baton, and Angelica Daneo, Curator of European Art before 1900, for a captivating evening that brings Impressionism to life through music, art, and insight. From the piano, O'Neil performs works by Debussy and his contemporaries, revealing how composers and painters like Pissarro shaped a new, expressive world. He's joined by curator Angelica Daneo, who shares powerful stories and striking, large-scale images of Pissarro's masterpieces. Together, O'Neil and Daneo they will explore the rich connections between sound and color, movement and mood making Impressionism feel as alive and relevant as ever.

Join Clarisse Fava-Piz, Dr. Claire Durand-Ruel Snollaerts, and Dr. Nerina Santorius, co-curators of The Honest Eye: Camille Pissarro’s Impressionism for a conversation offering a behind-the-scenes look at the making of this groundbreaking exhibition. The curators will share insights into Pissarro’s life and legacy, from his Caribbean roots to his pivotal role in shaping the Impressionist movement, and discuss how they brought together more than 80 works from around the world to present the first major U.S. retrospective of Pissarro in over 40 years. Learn how curatorial decisions, research, and Pissarro’s own letters informed the exhibition’s themes, narrative, and design.

Join Clarisse Fava-Piz, Dr. Claire Durand-Ruel Snollaerts, and Dr. Nerina Santorius, co-curators of The Honest Eye: Camille Pissarro³ Impressionism for a conversation offering a behind-the-scenes look at the making of this groundbreaking exhibition. The curators will share insights into Pissarro³ life and legacy, from his Caribbean roots to his pivotal role in shaping the Impressionist movement, and discuss how they brought together more than 80 works from around the world to present the first major U.S. retrospective of Pissarro in over 40 years. Learn how curatorial decisions, research, and Pissarro³ own letters informed the exhibition³ themes, narrative, and design.

Although the term “Impressionism” often evokes images of lively Parisian cafés and grand boulevards, Impressionist colleagues Camille Pissarro (b. St. Thomas, 1830) and Francisco Oller (b. Puerto Rico, 1833) possessed strong familial, professional, and personal connections to the Caribbean. Pissarro, an immigrant to France who never relinquished his foreign citizenship and Oller, a peripatetic, transatlantic traveler, were both born in the Caribbean on islands that today constitute territories of the present-day United States. This lecture explores the impact of their Caribbean roots on their respective artistic trajectories examining how the aesthetics and ideology of French Impressionism were transmitted across the Atlantic as a result of their creative exchange.

Although the term Émpressionism often evokes images of lively Parisian cafés and grand boulevards, Impressionist colleagues Camille Pissarro (b. St. Thomas, 1830) and Francisco Oller (b. Puerto Rico, 1833) possessed strong familial, professional, and personal connections to the Caribbean. Pissarro, an immigrant to France who never relinquished his foreign citizenship and Oller, a peripatetic, transatlantic traveler, were both born in the Caribbean on islands that today constitute territories of the present-day United States. This lecture explores the impact of their Caribbean roots on their respective artistic trajectories examining how the aesthetics and ideology of French Impressionism were transmitted across the Atlantic as a result of their creative exchange.

Please note that this link is for purchasing tickets to a livestream recording of the lecture so that you can watch from home. To purchase in-person tickets, please click here.

Discover how the birth of Impressionism in music was ignited by Pissarro, the Father of Impressionism in visual art. Join beloved conductor and storyteller Scott O'Neil, host of CPR Classical's Behind the Baton, and Angelica Daneo, Curator of European Art before 1900, for a captivating evening that brings Impressionism to life through music, art, and insight. From the piano, O'Neil performs works by Debussy and his contemporaries, revealing how composers and painters like Pissarro shaped a new, expressive world. He's joined by curator Angelica Daneo, who shares powerful stories and striking, large-scale images of Pissarro's masterpieces. Together, O'Neil and Daneo they will explore the rich connections between sound and color, movement and mood making Impressionism feel as alive and relevant as ever.

Anna Tsouhlarakis (born 1977, Lawrence, Kansas) uses a stereotype-busting sense of humor to reframe discussions about Native American art and identity. For more than two decades, she has centered Native histories in her practice to address indigenous rights and strategies of decolonization in the United States. From sculptures composed of Ikea furniture remnants, animal parts, and found objects, to large-format text paintings and installations, Tsouhlarakis offers deeper insight into the contemporary Native experience.

A recipient of the Creative Capital Award (2021), Louis Comfort Tiffany Award (2023), and Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship (2024), Tsouhlarakis has had solo exhibitions at the Fine Arts Center Museum at Colorado College, Colorado Springs; Museum of Contemporary Art Denver; and Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University, Columbus. She has participated in various artist residencies at MacDowell, Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and Yaddo. Her work is in the permanent collections of the Fine Arts Center Museum at Colorado College; New Mexico Museum of Art, Santa Fe; Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, Arizona; and Spencer Museum of Art, University of Kansas, Lawrence.

An enrolled member of the Navajo Nation and of Creek and Greek descent, Tsouhlarakis received a BA in 1999 from Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire and an MFA in 2002 from Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. She is an associate professor of arts practices at the University of Colorado, Boulder.

With Pissarro's Impressionism as a springboard, the Perspectives on Pissarro program series offers a fresh take on the exhibition, the artist, and his world.

Join curators, art historians, and a horticulturalist as they share insights into Pissarro's work and the natural landscapes that inspired him. Register for individual sessions or enjoy a discount for the full series.

Please note that this link is for purchasing tickets to livestream recordings of the lecture series so that you can watch from home. To purchase in-person tickets, please click here.

With Pissarro's Impressionism as a springboard, the Perspectives on Pissarro program series offers a fresh take on the exhibition, the artist, and his world.

Join curators, art historians, and a horticulturalist as they share insights into Pissarro's work and the natural landscapes that inspired him. Register for individual sessions or enjoy a discount for the full series.