Juan Rodriguez Conejo by Fernando Botero

Fernando Botero
1932-2023 | Colombian

Juan Rodriguez Conejo

Signed "Botero 88" (upper right)
Oil on canvas

Exemplifying Fernando Botero's distinctive visual language and mastery of form, Juan Rodriguez Conejo captures the Colombian master's enduring fascination with bullfighting in this intimate and delightful composition. This work belongs to Botero's most celebrated and coveted bullfighting series, created at the height of his international acclaim when his volumetric style had achieved worldwide recognition. The painting presents a compelling study of character and tradition, rendered with the technical virtuosity that established Botero as one of Latin America's most internationally acclaimed artists.

Botero transforms the traditional matador portrait through his signature approach to proportion and form, presenting Juan Rodriguez Conejo in his elaborate golden traje de luces against a rich landscape backdrop. The figure's robust presence fills the canvas, his voluminous form rendered with meticulous attention to surface textures and decorative details. Golden embroidery catches the light across the bullfighter's ceremonial costume, while his direct gaze creates an immediate connection with the viewer. The artist's masterful handling of flesh tones and fabric demonstrates his classical training, while the exaggerated proportions reveal his revolutionary approach to figuration. Behind the matador, an orange tree heavy with fruit, one of Botero's most beloved symbols, serves as a nod to Colombia's lush landscape.

Botero's artistic development reflects his unique position bridging Latin American and European traditions. Initially trained as a bullfighter before discovering his artistic calling, he brought intimate knowledge of this world to his canvases throughout his career. His classical education under Roberto Longhi, the distinguished Italian Renaissance scholar, combined with exposure to Mexican muralism during his formative years in Mexico City, created a distinctive synthesis of influences. This fusion of Western academic tradition with Latin American sensibilities positioned Botero as a singular voice in contemporary art, achieving unprecedented international recognition for a Latin American artist of his generation. His works entered the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, while an entire museum in Bogotá celebrates his contributions to contemporary art.

This portrait appears in the definitive catalogue raisonné by E.J. Sullivan and J.M. Tasset and has received extensive scholarly attention in four major monographs dedicated to Botero's bullfighting works. The composition was featured in a significant international touring exhibition that traveled across three continents, including prestigious venues in Venezuela, Mexico, Spain and France, culminating in the celebrated 1992 exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris.

Painted 1988

Canvas: 17 1/4" high x 15" wide (43.82 x 38.1 cm)
Frame: 25" high x 22 1/2" wide x 2" deep (63.5 x 57.15 x 5.08 cm)

Provenance:
Galerie Hopkins, Paris
Private collection
M.S. Rau, New Orleans

Exhibitions:
Coro, Venezuela, Museo de Arte, January-February 1989
Caracas, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, April 1989
Mexico City, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Internacional Rufino Tamayo, Botero, La Corrida, May-August 1989, no. 37, p. 69 (illustrated in color)
Sevilla, Hospital de los Venerables Sacerdotes, Botero, La Corrida, March-April 1992, p. 42 (illustrated in color)
Paris, Grand Palais, Botero aux Champs Elysées, La Corrida au Grand Palais, November 1992, p. 25 (illustrated in color)
Bogota, Banco de la República, Botero, La Corrida, February-March 1993, no. 20, p. 36 (illustrated in color)
Paris, Galerie Hopkins-Thomas-Custot, Fernando Botero, Petits formats, March-July 2001, no. 4, p. 23 (illustrated in color)

Literature:
J.M. Bonald, Botero, La Corrida, 1989, p. 92 (illustrated in color)
J.M. Bonald, Botero, La Corrida, 1990, p. 92 (illustrated in color)
J.M. Bonald, Botero, The Bullfight, 1990, p. 92 (illustrated in color)
E.J. Sullivan & J.M. Tasset, Fernando Botero: Monograph & Catalogue Raisonné, Paintings, 1975-1990, 2000, no. 1988/17, p. 432 (illustrated)