Eclectic and Enigmatic ëCentury of Painting in Panamaí Explores National Identity by Gary Tischler Thereís a lot to see and enjoy in ìA Century of Painting in Panama,î an exhibition that roams 100 years of Panamanian art. Thereís eye candy, history, provocative works, thick colors, serene landscapes, idealism and idyllic works. What seems to be missing is anything that is instinctively recognizable as Panamanian art. Thereís no unifying theme, no school of artists, no stylistic journeys from one artistic trend to another. Given that this exhibition at the Inter-American Development Bankís Cultural Center also celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Panama, this almost spectacular diversity has no centerpiece, no flashpoint identityóand that is exactly the point. ìI think youíll find that there is no real theme to this exhibition,î said FÈlix Angel, general coordinator and curator of the Inter-American Development Bank Cultural Center. ìWhat you will find is a search for identity, questions about identity, a kind of catching-up process. The American presence here in terms of the [Panama Canal] loomed so large for so long that it tended to blot out other influencesóa connection, for instance, to the past, and to European trends and movement. In Panama, this didnít happen until the 1960s, with the emergence of a new generation of artists.î Issues specific to Panama donít show up in the paintings that make up this exhibition. Rather, itís as if an art world is trying to emerge through a culture that is at once both old and new. Motifs that appeared in Latin American and Central American art are not necessarily present in Panamanian paintings. The countryís thematic historyóits split from Colombia, the construction of the Panama Canal, its relationship with the United States, its age of dictatorsóare all long-standing historical issues that have had a hand in the countryís intriguing culture. ìThe selections,î Angel said, ìwere very complex and demanding. We found that in surveying historians, institutional leaders, artists, cultural leaders, in terms of rating the most important or best artists in Panama over a century, that the leaders would at least in the forefront all be men, and they were all painters.î There are in fact several women painters in this exhibition, which is nothing if not eclectic. They all tend to appear later in Panamaís historical saga, and they are all interesting in style and subject. Most notable of these women is Isabel de ObaldÌa, whose enigmatic and striking oil painting ìAguas Turbias (Muddy Waters)î flanks a quartet of paintings by women artists. ObaldÌaís portrayal of two figures in the wateróone headless, the other bent over with its head below the water, and both being watched over by two partially seen eyesóis, as Angel suggested, rich in political themes and metaphor. Coqui CalderÛn also presents a work that is rife with political implication in ìCountdown (Cuenta Regresiva),î which seems to presciently predict the upheaval that entailed a military revolution in 1967. Olga S·nchez, on the other hand, is represented here by ìLarga Espera (Long Wait),î a powerful work that seems almost accusative and full of weighty emotion, while Trixie BriceÒoís ìPaÌs IncÛgnito (Incognito Nation)î focuses on the Panama Canal in an almost childlike way. Teresa Icaza and Olga Sinclair, both featured in the exhibition, were two artists who flowered in the 1970s and 1980s despite a period of dictatorship. Viewers can also see more recent works, such as Amalia Tapiaís 2002 painting ìBahÌa (Bay),î a remarkably beautiful seascape bathed in poetic light. The belated movement into abstract art seen in Tapiaís painting seems to make a full circle back to the beginnings of Panamanian art with the emergence of Roberto Lewis, Panamaís premier painter. Lewis, a major influence on legions of Panamanian painters, chose to depict an idyllic and romantic vision of his country in his charming ìTamarindos (Tamarind Trees),î also on display here. Later, there would be the eccentric work of Manuel E. Amador, who belonged to no particular school but who took the first tentative steps toward modernism in Panamanian art. By the 1950s, abstractions were beginning to make themselves felt as Panamanian artists such as Eudoro Silvera and Isaac BenÌtez broke from tradition with firm and strange works, including Silveraís ìBodegÛn con PiÒa (Still Life With Pineapple)î and BenÌtezís ìMar Revuelto (Stormy Sea).î But it was Guillermo Trujillo in the 1970s and 1980s who pushed the envelope by making energetic works that were at once very modern yet incorporated indigenous aspects of Panamanian culture. The exhibition, in some ways, is like an exciting mystery without a solution. It is full of rich, individualistic works without an answer to the specific nature of Panamanian art. In this exhibition, you can see that the question is its own answer, the result being a journey that is still ongoing. ìA Century of Painting in Panamaî runs through Jan. 16 at the Inter-American Development Bank Cultural Center, 1300 New York Ave., NW. For more information, please call (202) 623-3774 or visit www.iadb.org/cultural/. Gary Tischler is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.