Spanish Light: Sorolla in American Collection

On the occasion of the 100th Anniversary of Joaquín Sorolla’s death, the Meadows Museum has organized an exhibition that showcases some unique and never-shown works by the Spanish painter.

This year marks the centennial of the death of the Spanish painter Joaquín Sorolla y Bastida (1863–1923). In honor of this anniversary, the Spanish government has declared 2023 the “year of Sorolla.”

At the Meadows Museum, the celebration brings a new exhibit by the painter, Spanish Light: Sorolla in American Collections. Curated by renowned scholar Blanca Pons-Sorolla, the artist’s great-granddaughter, this exhibition will feature 27 compelling and rarely seen paintings from private collections in the United States, many of which will be displayed in a public museum for the first time. The exhibition will highlight Sorolla’s most popular and characteristic subjects, such as the sun-bleached sails of Valencian fishing boats, children frolicking on the shoreline, lively garden scenes, and pensive figural studies.

An accompanying catalogue featuring an essay by Pons-Sorolla will offer a new perspective on the artist and the history of collecting, examining many works that have been inaccessible to the public. This publication builds on research conducted for the Meadows Museum’s groundbreaking 2013–14 exhibition Sorolla and America, which was also curated by Pons-Sorolla.