Juan Carlos Callirgos to present on casta paintings
Jan. 28—BEMIDJI — Bemidji State's Department of Languages and Indigenous Studies will host Dr. Juan Carlos Callirgos' presentation on casta paintings at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 3, at Watermark Art Center, 505 Bemidji Ave. N.
"Casta paintings, known for their depiction of interracial relationships and the progeny thereof, imply societal elitism with regard to lifestyle, ethnicity and gender as it relates to a perceived 'distinction and respectability' within Spanish American colonial society," a release said.
"Callirgos will address the function of these peculiar pieces of art as well as reflect on this genre from a 21st-century perspective which includes the question, 'Are these conceptions of gender and race similar to those currently held?'"
Dr. Callirgos is an associate professor of anthropology and director of the gender studies program at the Universidad Pontificia of Lima in Perú. He is serving as a visiting scholar on the Bemidji State University faculty for the 2023-24 academic year through a Fulbright program sponsorship.
Callirgos has a Ph.D. in Latin American history from the University of Florida. With a background in cultural anthropology and gender studies, his courses focus on anthropology, race and ethnicity, colonial and postcolonial history and gender.
He will teach the classes "Latin American Civilization" and "From Multiculturalism to Critical Interculturality" as part of BSU's Department of Languages and Indigenous Studies programming, the release said.
The event is free and open to the public.
Contact Ana Lopez-Aguelera of BSU at
(218) 755-2809
for more information. If you need accommodation for this event, contact the Accessibility Services office (Decker Hall 202) at
(218) 755-3883.
