by The Editors | July 8, 2024
Celebrating Puerto Rican Resilience: Explore ‘Nostalgia for My Island’ at Rollins Museum of Art
Get a glimpse of Puerto Rico from 1786 to 1962 and its esteemed artists at the Rollins Museum of Art in Winter Park.

A salty southern breeze drifts through the window, opening the shutters and carrying a lively mix of Spanish and English voices. Across the street, a bright orange flamboyán sways under a royal palm and the afternoon sun illuminates the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Merced. Enjoy the scene from painter Miguel Pou y Becerra’s studio in 1930s Ponce, Puerto Rico, in View from My Studio, Salud 58, Ponce / Vista desde mi estudio, Salud 58, Ponce and more at the Rollins Museum of Art’s upcoming exhibit, “Nostalgia for My Island: Puerto Rican Painting from the Museo de Arte de Ponce (1786–1962).”
Later this year, the Winter Park museum hosts this exclusive exhibition from Puerto Rico’s Museo de Arte de Ponce as it tours the United States. Divided into three themes—my home, my people and my island—the exhibition showcases significant Puerto Rican artists from the late 18th century to the mid-20th century. The curator, Iraida Rodríguez-Negrón, has assembled an assortment of paintings including landscapes, still lifes and portraits, all capturing the island as it navigates a politically and socially tumultuous 200 years. Witness the painting Still Life / Naturaleza muerta by notable artist Francisco Oller y Cestero. Known for his still lifes and landscapes, this piece by Oller displays a realistic depiction of citrus fruits, a wicker basket, three sweet potatoes and a green glass bottle. Also included in the exhibition is The Vision of Saint Philip Benizi / Visión de San Felipe Benicio by José Campeche y Jordán, a European-styled oil painting of the 13th-century Italian St. Philip Benizi surrounded by God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary in heaven.
There was almost a sense of duty to capture and present what it meant to be Puerto Rican at the time, going from one imperial authority to what they saw as this new kind of colonial-type relationship and presence on the island.
—Gisela Carbonell
Each of the 20 paintings in the exhibition gives museumgoers a personalized perspective into what makes the artists uniquely Puerto Rican—the food they eat, their jobs, their religious beliefs and the environment around them are all pieces in the mosaic of their identity. As Greater Orlando has amassed the largest Puerto Rican population outside of the island, “Nostalgia for My Island” bridges the distance and honors that deep connection to home.

“There was almost a sense of duty to capture and present what it meant to be Puerto Rican at the time, going from one imperial authority to what they saw as this new kind of colonial-type relationship and presence on the island,” says RMA curator Gisela Carbonell, Ph.D. Carbonell explains what makes up a cultural identity and how it evolved over time in Puerto Rico as power shifted from the Spanish crown to the United States. Every facet, every change and every perspective was recorded by the island’s artists.
“They were there. They saw and they lived those transformations. Just like writers, just like poets,” says Carbonell. “In this case, these painters were really in tune with what was happening and with their role in that context.”
For a deeper look into the island of Puerto Rico, visit “Nostalgia for My Island: Puerto Rican Painting from the Museo de Arte de Ponce (1786–1962)” from Sept. 15, 2024, to Jan. 5, 2025. For more information, visit rollins.edu/rma.