Artists & Artisans

Juan Rodriguez Conejo by Fernando Botero
Juan Rodriguez Conejo by Fernando Botero
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Fernando Botero Angulo stands as one of the most influential and recognizable Latin American artists of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Self-styled "the most Colombian of Colombian artists," Botero developed a distinctive visual language known as "Boterismo," characterized by exaggerated, voluminous forms that transformed figurative art. Throughout his seven-decade career, Botero created a comprehensive oeuvre spanning paintings, drawings and monumental sculptures that challenged conventional notions of proportion while maintaining classical artistic principles.

With the most museum exhibitions and books written about him of any contemporary Latin American artist, Botero achieved unprecedented international recognition during his lifetime. His masterful synthesis of European artistic traditions with Colombian sensibilities positioned him as a singular voice in modern art, one whose influence extends far beyond the boundaries of Latin America.

Background:


Fernando Botero was born on April 19, 1932, in Medellín, Colombia, to David Botero, a traveling salesman, and Flora Angulo, a seamstress. His father died when Fernando was four years old, leaving behind a collection of illustrated books that would serve as an early artistic inspiration. The family's modest circumstances meant Botero's mother had to support three sons through her work as a seamstress, instilling in the future artist an appreciation for craftsmanship and attention to detail.

Growing up in Medellín, Botero was surrounded by the Baroque colonial architecture and vibrant street life that would later influence his artistic vision. In 1944, his uncle enrolled him in a school for matadors, where he spent two years. However, rather than embracing the bullfighting tradition, Botero discovered he was more interested in drawing the bulls and matadors than participating in the spectacle. At age 15, he would sell his watercolors outside the Plaza de Toros ticket office to earn money for bullfight tickets.

Around the same time, Botero's love of drawing nudes caused problems with his Roman Catholic education, and he was expelled from school after defending Pablo Picasso's art in an essay. This early confrontation with artistic censorship would inform his lifelong commitment to creative freedom and expression.

Early Artistic Development (1948-1955)


At age 16, Botero had his first illustrations published in the Sunday supplement of El Colombiano, one of Medellín's most important newspapers. His paintings were first exhibited in 1948, and two years later, in Bogotá, he had his first one-man show. These early works reflected the influence of pre-Columbian and Spanish colonial art that surrounded him as well as the political work of Mexican muralist Diego Rivera.

In 1952, using earnings from his gallery sales, Botero sailed to Europe. While studying painting in Madrid in the early 1950s, he made his living by copying paintings housed in the Prado Museum—particularly those of his idols at the time, Francisco de Goya and Diego Velázquez—and selling them to tourists. From Madrid, Botero moved to Paris, where he spent most of his time in the Louvre studying the works there. He later lived in Florence from 1953 to 1954, studying the works of Renaissance masters. This European sojourn deepened his appreciation for volumetric representation and the mathematical principles underlying Renaissance art.

The Birth of Boterismo (1955-1960)


The pivotal moment in Botero's artistic development occurred in Mexico City in the mid-1950s. In 1957, he painted the prestigious Still Life with Mandolin – the first of his canvases inspired by Pre-Colombian and Folk Art – where he distorted and dilated his shapes for dramatic visual effect, now known and beloved. Throughout this decade, he also won awards, including the Colombian Artists' Salon prize in 1958 with his painting La alcoba nupcial (The Bridal Chamber) and the Guggenheim International Award for Colombia in 1960 with his work La Bataille de l'archi-diable (The Battle of the Devil).

International Recognition (1960-1975)


When he moved to New York City in 1960, he had developed his trademark style: the depiction of round, corpulent humans and animals. In these works, he referenced Latin-American folk art in his use of flat, bright colour and boldly outlined forms. He favoured a smooth look in his paintings, eliminating the appearance of brushwork and texture.

His reputation improved significantly after the New York Museum of Modern Art acquired his painting Mona Lisa, Age Twelve in 1961. This acquisition marked his entry into the international art establishment and validated his unique approach to figurative art. The inflated proportions of his figures also suggest an element of political satire, perhaps hinting at the subjects' inflated egos or importance. Works like Presidential Family (1967) demonstrated Botero's ability to combine aesthetic innovation with social commentary, using humor and exaggeration to critique power structures.

 Sculptural Ventures and Maturity (1975-2000)


In 1973, Botero returned to Paris and began creating sculptures in addition to his works on canvas. He exhibited his characteristic bronze sculptures for the first time at the Grand Palais in Paris in 1977. These works extended the concerns of his painting, as he again focused on rotund subjects.

Successful outdoor exhibitions of his monumental bronze figures, including Roman Soldier (1985), Maternity (1989), and The Left Hand (1992), were staged around the world in the 1990s. These public installations democratized art by bringing Botero's vision directly to urban populations, transforming public spaces into open-air galleries.

Botero also continued to paint, creating bullfight scenes throughout the 1980s and later finding inspiration in topical issues. His examination of contemporary Colombian society included The Death of Pablo Escobar (1999), which shows the leader of the Medellín cartel being fatally shot.

Artistic Philosophy and Technique:


Botero explained his use of these "large people," as they are often called by critics: "An artist is attracted to certain kinds of form without knowing why. You adopt a position intuitively; only later do you attempt to rationalize or even justify it." Botero considers the still life to be the purest form an artist can paint, asserting that if an artist can imagine a collection of fruit, for instance, "It shows the degree of conviction [...] It makes [his or her] style stronger and clearer." Of an orange (his favorite fruit to paint) he says, "I look at it, then I eat it, then I paint it" adding that "I have never worked with models nor have I ever placed a dead piece of nature on the table to paint it [...] I have never wanted to be a prisoner to reality."

Legacy and Influence:


Due to his universally recognizable style and his prolific artistic production, Botero is in incredibly high demand at auction. At a recent auction at Christie's in New York, his painting Card Players (1986) sold for over $2 million. His works are presently held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museo Botero in Bogotá, which is dedicated to the artist and his oeuvre. This institutional validation underscores Botero's position within the canon of modern art.

Fernando Botero died from complications of pneumonia on September 15, 2023, at age 91, in Monaco. His passing marked the end of an era in Latin American art, but his influence continues through the countless artists inspired by his bold reimagining of figurative representation.

Artists & Artisans

Fernando Botero Angulo stands as one of the most influential and recognizable Latin American artists of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Self-styled "the most Colombian of Colombian artists," Botero developed a distinctive visual language known as "Boterismo," characterized by exaggerated, voluminous forms that transformed figurative art. Throughout his seven-decade career, Botero created a comprehensive oeuvre spanning paintings, drawings and monumental sculptures that challenged conventional notions of proportion while maintaining classical artistic principles.

With the most museum exhibitions and books written about him of any contemporary Latin American artist, Botero achieved unprecedented international recognition during his lifetime. His masterful synthesis of European artistic traditions with Colombian sensibilities positioned him as a singular voice in modern art, one whose influence extends far beyond the boundaries of Latin America.

Background:


Fernando Botero was born on April 19, 1932, in Medellín, Colombia, to David Botero, a traveling salesman, and Flora Angulo, a seamstress. His father died when Fernando was four years old, leaving behind a collection of illustrated books that would serve as an early artistic inspiration. The family's modest circumstances meant Botero's mother had to support three sons through her work as a seamstress, instilling in the future artist an appreciation for craftsmanship and attention to detail.

Growing up in Medellín, Botero was surrounded by the Baroque colonial architecture and vibrant street life that would later influence his artistic vision. In 1944, his uncle enrolled him in a school for matadors, where he spent two years. However, rather than embracing the bullfighting tradition, Botero discovered he was more interested in drawing the bulls and matadors than participating in the spectacle. At age 15, he would sell his watercolors outside the Plaza de Toros ticket office to earn money for bullfight tickets.

Around the same time, Botero's love of drawing nudes caused problems with his Roman Catholic education, and he was expelled from school after defending Pablo Picasso's art in an essay. This early confrontation with artistic censorship would inform his lifelong commitment to creative freedom and expression.

Early Artistic Development (1948-1955)


At age 16, Botero had his first illustrations published in the Sunday supplement of El Colombiano, one of Medellín's most important newspapers. His paintings were first exhibited in 1948, and two years later, in Bogotá, he had his first one-man show. These early works reflected the influence of pre-Columbian and Spanish colonial art that surrounded him as well as the political work of Mexican muralist Diego Rivera.

In 1952, using earnings from his gallery sales, Botero sailed to Europe. While studying painting in Madrid in the early 1950s, he made his living by copying paintings housed in the Prado Museum—particularly those of his idols at the time, Francisco de Goya and Diego Velázquez—and selling them to tourists. From Madrid, Botero moved to Paris, where he spent most of his time in the Louvre studying the works there. He later lived in Florence from 1953 to 1954, studying the works of Renaissance masters. This European sojourn deepened his appreciation for volumetric representation and the mathematical principles underlying Renaissance art.

The Birth of Boterismo (1955-1960)


The pivotal moment in Botero's artistic development occurred in Mexico City in the mid-1950s. In 1957, he painted the prestigious Still Life with Mandolin – the first of his canvases inspired by Pre-Colombian and Folk Art – where he distorted and dilated his shapes for dramatic visual effect, now known and beloved. Throughout this decade, he also won awards, including the Colombian Artists' Salon prize in 1958 with his painting La alcoba nupcial (The Bridal Chamber) and the Guggenheim International Award for Colombia in 1960 with his work La Bataille de l'archi-diable (The Battle of the Devil).

International Recognition (1960-1975)


When he moved to New York City in 1960, he had developed his trademark style: the depiction of round, corpulent humans and animals. In these works, he referenced Latin-American folk art in his use of flat, bright colour and boldly outlined forms. He favoured a smooth look in his paintings, eliminating the appearance of brushwork and texture.

His reputation improved significantly after the New York Museum of Modern Art acquired his painting Mona Lisa, Age Twelve in 1961. This acquisition marked his entry into the international art establishment and validated his unique approach to figurative art. The inflated proportions of his figures also suggest an element of political satire, perhaps hinting at the subjects' inflated egos or importance. Works like Presidential Family (1967) demonstrated Botero's ability to combine aesthetic innovation with social commentary, using humor and exaggeration to critique power structures.

 Sculptural Ventures and Maturity (1975-2000)


In 1973, Botero returned to Paris and began creating sculptures in addition to his works on canvas. He exhibited his characteristic bronze sculptures for the first time at the Grand Palais in Paris in 1977. These works extended the concerns of his painting, as he again focused on rotund subjects.

Successful outdoor exhibitions of his monumental bronze figures, including Roman Soldier (1985), Maternity (1989), and The Left Hand (1992), were staged around the world in the 1990s. These public installations democratized art by bringing Botero's vision directly to urban populations, transforming public spaces into open-air galleries.

Botero also continued to paint, creating bullfight scenes throughout the 1980s and later finding inspiration in topical issues. His examination of contemporary Colombian society included The Death of Pablo Escobar (1999), which shows the leader of the Medellín cartel being fatally shot.

Artistic Philosophy and Technique:


Botero explained his use of these "large people," as they are often called by critics: "An artist is attracted to certain kinds of form without knowing why. You adopt a position intuitively; only later do you attempt to rationalize or even justify it." Botero considers the still life to be the purest form an artist can paint, asserting that if an artist can imagine a collection of fruit, for instance, "It shows the degree of conviction [...] It makes [his or her] style stronger and clearer." Of an orange (his favorite fruit to paint) he says, "I look at it, then I eat it, then I paint it" adding that "I have never worked with models nor have I ever placed a dead piece of nature on the table to paint it [...] I have never wanted to be a prisoner to reality."

Legacy and Influence:


Due to his universally recognizable style and his prolific artistic production, Botero is in incredibly high demand at auction. At a recent auction at Christie's in New York, his painting Card Players (1986) sold for over $2 million. His works are presently held in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Museo Botero in Bogotá, which is dedicated to the artist and his oeuvre. This institutional validation underscores Botero's position within the canon of modern art.

Fernando Botero died from complications of pneumonia on September 15, 2023, at age 91, in Monaco. His passing marked the end of an era in Latin American art, but his influence continues through the countless artists inspired by his bold reimagining of figurative representation.