Martin Johnson Heade (1819–1904),
United States
Sunset—A Scene in Brazil, 1864–1865
Oil on canvas
Colección Patricia Phelps de Cisneros
One of twenty paintings that Martin Johnson Heade completed while visiting Brazil, this scene shows the end of the workday for a free Afro-Brazilian community located in Rio’s rural surrounding area. In Sunset—A Scene in Brazil, Heade chooses to depict a country road instead of the bustling metropolis nearby. Reflecting his connection with the Luminist painters, he contrasts light and dark to dramatize the peaceful scene.