Fernando Botero Virtual Tour Catalog
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© 2020, David Benrimon Fine Art, LLC *This catalogue is presented by David Benrimon Fine Art LLC as a reference guide to the artworks of Fernando Botero. David Benrimon Fine Art LLC does not represent the artist Fernando Botero and nothing in this catalogue should be interpreted or construed that David Benrimon Fine Art LLC represents Fernando Botero.
Essay F
ernando Botero was born in 1932 in the heart of the Andes Mountains in Medellín, Colombia. As a child, Botero attended a school for matadors for several years, but recognized that his true passion was art. Botero traveled to Spain and France before settling down in Florence, where he repeatedly visited the Italian Quattrocento masters and discovered techniques from a bygone era. The old masters idolized plump women and men with curves since they signified health and wealth. He recognized the necessity of paying homage to his artistic forefathers and dedicated his practice to creating artwork featuring these body types while remaining relatable to contemporary norms. His large subjects became the centerpieces of all of his artwork and any accompanying environs were secondary.
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hat makes a canonical artist is not only their unique vision, but also their ability to participate in the art historical conversation. This requires rigorous study of art history, observation of the canon and the ability to contribute to it. Botero developed his innovative dimension by infusing his art historical references with contemporary elements and themes from his everyday existence. He synthesizes his own artistic vision by combining the world of Colombia with the aesthetics of the Italian masters, thus creating a distinctive world of his own. His imagined universe is peopled with various characters from Medellín from bullfighters and dancers to street musicians and lovers. Concierto Campestre, a gorgeous oil painting from 2017, features a romantic moment between a lounging couple as the gentleman serenades his sophisticated partner. Botero playfully paints his large characters as approachable and intimate, despite their almost farcical appearance. Botero gives his viewers a unique view of these men and women, enclosing them in a sensual ambiance of joy and color.
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otero first achieved international fame on the Champs-Elysees in Paris where he had a major, outdoor retrospective of some of his larger sculptures. It proved to be a huge success and garnered him international press and patronage. These rotund figures not only demonstrate Botero’s ability to portray individual Medellín characters from his life, but also to universalize the figures, allowing an international audience to identify with them and see their unusual elegance. His subjects portray a rare irony – the rounded stomachs and undefined limbs are hardly the first things associated with grace, yet his sculptures and paintings are striking and chic. Botero’s figures are both inviting and enchanting and the overwhelming “roundness” of his characters, whether sculpted in bronze, painted on canvas, or drawn on paper, has solidified him as a legend in the art historical canon.
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otero’s beautiful, feminine women are relatable, even in their unconventional, stout portrayal. For example, the graceful and satirical sculpture, Ballerina, addresses the complex social forces at play for Botero. Ballerinas are typically associated with their agility, petite size and slimness. While this sculpture shows flexibility and poise, the ballerina has the shape of Botero’s characteristically rotund woman. Contemporary society continues to sanction emaciated women as the iconic figures of beauty, fashion and design. Botero, in turn, scoffs at new trends affecting the art world and continues to create his graceful, obese women and men, thereby challenging, if not mocking, popular Western culture. This is the sign of a living Master.
Fernando Botero Society Woman, 2003 Oil on canvas 61 h x 48 w in
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Fernando Botero The Saint, 2017 Oil on canvas 73 h x 39 w in
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Fernando Botero Couple with Still Life, 2013 Oil on canvas 38 h x 48 w in
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Fernando Botero Familia en el Campo, 2017 Oil on canvas 51 h x 39 w in
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Fernando Botero Concierto Campestre, 2017 Oil on canvas 42 h x 62 w in
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Fernando Botero Trainer with Tiger, 2007 Oil on canvas 55 h x 72 w in
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Fernando Botero The Street, 2010 Charcoal on canvas 51 h x 38 w in
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Fernando Botero Untitled (St. George), 1983 Sanguine and ink on paper 19 h x 17 w in
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Fernando Botero Natura Morte, 2006 Charcoal on paper 14 h x 12 w in
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Fernando Botero Natura Morte, 2006 Watercolor on paper 16 h x 12 w in
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Fernando Botero Woman on Horse, 2015 Bronze 50 h x 32 w x 18 d in
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Fernando Botero Man on Horse, 2016 Bronze 25 h x 19 w x 12 d in
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Fernando Botero Seated Woman, 1987 Bronze 24 h x 9 w x 12 d in
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Fernando Botero Maternity, 2006 Bronze 19 h x 8 w x 7 d in
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Fernando Botero Leda and the Swan, 2018 Bronze 67 h x 127 w x 55 d in
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