I studied Spanish as a third language when I was in school. Thanks to my teacher, I was able to learn not only its grammar but also gain a lot of information about Latin America. This sparked my interest in its culture. Needless to say, it’s impossible to integrate such diverse cultures into one. So, I decided to travel to each country individually.
In May 2011, I took a trip to Colombia. One of the purposes of my visit was to see the art museum of Fernando Botero, my favorite artist. This is a story about Maestro Fernando Botero.
FERNANDO BOTERO IS…
Fernando Botero was born in 1932 in Colombia. He is considered the most famous artist from Latin America. He spent his boyhood in Medellín and even attended a matador school. However, in order to pursue his dream of becoming an artist, he left the school.
When he was 16 years old (in 1948), Botero’s paintings were first presented to the public as part of a group exhibition. At that time, he was already working as an illustrator for a local newspaper.
His first solo exhibition was held at the Galería Leo Matiz in Bogotá in 1950. In 1952, Botero studied at the Academia de San Fernando in Madrid, where he was inspired by Spanish masters such as Francisco de Goya and Diego Velázquez.
During his travels in Mexico, he developed the idea of depicting “fat” or exaggeratedly voluminous figures. Since then, he has continued to refine his distinctive style and has received high praise and international recognition for his work.
BOTERISMO
Everywhere in Colombia, you can find works by Fernando Botero. His pieces are instantly recognizable thanks to his unique style known as Boterismo. He uses exaggerated proportions, often depicting people and objects in oversized, voluminous forms. His work is often said to express political criticism or humor.
Botero explains the reason behind his use of inflated figures as follows:
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.
For Botero, these figures are not simply “fat.” He aims to explore and express the volume and sensuality of form in his subjects.
HIS ART WORKS
We can see his masterpieces not only in Colombia, but in many cities in the world. For example the Sculpture CAT in Barcelona, the Sculpture Roman Warrior in Yerevan, Armenia and Man on Horse in Jerusalem. Museo Botero in Bogotá has 123 pieces of his work. We can enjoy them forgetting the time.
Do you want to see his works?
I’ve prepared a virtual tour on my blog — feel free to check it out!
No Comments