Fernando Botero’s inimitable style of voluminous figures that has positioned him on the world stage as undoubtedly the most important and recognisable Colombian modern painter. Botero developed this signature technique early in his career in the 1960s, and yet his recent work continues to impress upon us the artist’s masterful accomplishments and complex trajectory.
Born in the city of Medellin in 1932, Botero had little access to modern art and was thus influenced by the Spanish colonial art found in the chapels of his home town. He earned a scholarship to study abroad in Spain in 1952, where he discovered a catalogue of Italian Renaissance art that reproduced Piero della Francesca’s fresco The Queen of Sheba Adoring the Holy Wood from the Basilica of San Francesco in Arezzo. Enthralled by this work, Botero became obsessed with the sensuality of forms in Italian Renaissance art. Inspired, he moved to Florence to study under the renowned art historian and scholar, Roberto Longhi. Botero’s early paintings evince a deep understanding of both old masters, including Diego Velázquez and Giotto, as well as modern artists, such as Giorgio de Chirico. Botero later traveled to Mexico, where he experienced firsthand the work of Los Tres Grandes: Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros and José Clemente Orozco. The monumental scale of the Mexican modernists’ figures paired with their decisive social commentary had a strong impact on Botero’s work, compelling him to experiment with excessive volume and proportions, tools that he would use to intensify the mordant comments he made on society’s shortcomings. Botero died in 2023.
Part 3 of a 6-part series on the works of Fernando Botero:
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| 1979 Woman on a Balcony oil on canvas 94.6 x 78.7 cm |
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| 1979 The Musicians oil on canvas 217.2 x 189.9 cm |
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| 1979 The Bedroom oil on canvas 194 x 134 cm |
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| 1979 Still Life with Oranges pastel on paper 85.1 x 118.1 cm |
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| 1979 Still Life with Grapes watercolour on paper 46.4 x 61 cm |
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| 1980 Untitled (Female Skeleton) pastel and watercolour on paper laid down on canvas 177.1 x 105.7 cm |
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| 1980 The Toilette oil on canvas 185.4 x 145.3 cm |
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| 1980 Still Life with grey Pitcher watercolour on paper mounted on canvas 112.4 x 148.9 cm |
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| 1980 Poodle on a Cushion oil on canvas 91.4 x 76.8 cm |
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| 1980 Paradise oil on paper laid down on wood panel 35.5 x 41.5 cm |
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| 1980 Man Smoking oil on canvas 189.8 x 136.2 cm |
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| 1980-85 Still Life with Watermelon sanguine and white chalk on paper 35.2 x 45.4 cm |
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| 1981 Madame Gres charcoal and pastel on paper 43 x 36 cm |
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| 1981 Little Girl bronze with dark brown patina 106.7 x 61 x 40.6 cm |
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| 1981 Dog bronze 73.7 x 76.2 x 68.6 cm |
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| 1981 Dog bronze 68.6 x 64.6 x 40.6 cm |
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| 1981 Adam and Eve bronze (details not found) |
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| 1981 Woman with Bun watercolour on paper 95 x 75 cm |
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| 1981 Woman dressed by Hanai Mori watercolour on canvas 160 x 118 cm |
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| 1981 Still Life with Sausages watercolour on paper laid down on canvas 160.3 x 112.7 cm |
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| 1981 Seated Woman graphite and charcoal on paper 43.8 x 35.6 cm |
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| 1981 Nun Eating an Apple oil on canvas 101.5 x 91.5 cm |
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| 1981-82 Head Siena marble 48.9 x 34.3 x 36.8 cm |
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| 1982 The Cardinal watercolour on paper 186 x 108 cm |
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| 1982 Teresita oil on canvas 113 x 73 cm |
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| 1982 Still Life with Bottle oil on canvas 110.5 x 167.6 cm |
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| 1982 Hunter oil on canvas 161.6 x 110.8 cm |
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| 1982 Girl looking at herself in the Mirror charcoal on canvas 150.7 x 114.3 cm |
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| 1982 Dancing Couple oil on canvas 150 x 107.6 cm |
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| 1982 Colombian eating a Banana oil on canvas 110.2 x 79.1 cm |
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| 1983 Saint George sanguine and ink on paper 51.3 x 39.6 cm |
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| 1983 Lady in Profile oil on canvas 88.9 x 70.2 cm |
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| 1983 Lady in Profile oil on canvas 88.9 x 70.2 cm |
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| 1984 The Picador oil on canvas 154 x 121.9 cm |
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| 1984 The Picador oil on canvas 50 x 55.5 cm |
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| 1984 Flamenco Venue oil on canvas 201.3 x 202.6 cm |
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| 1984 Man and Horse oil on canvas 178.4 x 125.3 cm |
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| 1984 Girl watercolour on paper 43.5 x 33 cm |
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| 1984 Four Musicians oil on canvas 221.3 x 185 cm |
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| 1984 Flamenco oil on canvas 201.3 x 202.6 cm |
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| 1984 Bullfighter oil on canvas 180.3 x 127 cm |
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| 1985 Valerito oil on canvas 69.9 x 61.8 cm |
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| 1985 Picador in the Bullring oil on canvas 168.9 x 99.1 cm |
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| 1985 Family Scene oil on canvas 169 x 179 cm |
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| by 1985Antonio Chaves “Chavito” oil on canvas 183 x 106.6 cm |
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| 1986 The Bull oil on linen 197 x 161 cm |
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| 1986 La Siesta oil on canvas 143.8 x 126.7 cm |
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| 1986 In the Sand oil on canvas 40 x 50 cm |
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| 1986 Archangel oil on canvas 78.7 x 53.5 cm |
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| 1986 Woman with Hat oil on canvas 113 x 74 cm |
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| 1986 The Spinster oil on canvas 191.8 x 128.9 cm |
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| 1986 The Picador oil on canvas (details not found) |
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| 1986 The Musicians oil on canvas 177 x 137 cm |