Turkish art lovers in Istanbul are already enjoying the work of one of Colombia´s most unique contemporary artists, Fernando Botero (Medellín, 1932), considered the most valued Latin American artist currently living in the world and whose works are visiting Turkey for the first time.

The exhibition is being held at the Pera Museum in Istanbul with the collaboration of the Consulate of Colombia, the Spanish Embassy and Instituto Cervantes in Istanbul and includes a selection of 64 paintings organized thematically in six sections: Still lifes, Versions, Bull fights, Circus, Life in Latin America and the Latin American people.

“Still-life” records especially the work belonging to the period of the ’60s, a time when Botero painting is more than an image that goes beyond the simple composition of fruits or objects arranged on a table and often reveal a world of their own right.

“Versions” highlights one of the elements that best characterizes his painting: His ability to combine Latino culture with that of Europe, through different versions of works by masters such as Giotto, Piero della Francesca, Leonardo, Mantegna, Velázquez and Goya, which were his landmarks paintings after his trip to Italy and Spain in the 50s.

“Bullfighting” is an issue that Botero could never leave out in his work, a fascinating and evocative world that is deeply rooted in the tradition of his people. “I dared to paint the bulls because I was very familiar with the topic. It is impossible to paint if there is no strong relationship between the subject and one’s soul. This relationship is absolutely necessary as it gives you a kind of moral authority. This authority, in my case, sprang from the blood and my own life” Botero once said.

As for the “Circus”, Botero became enamored of this issue in Mexico, where he used to spend the winter months. It was there that he became enthralled by the characters that fill the atmosphere of the circus, colors, movement, and life histories that are part of this show as archaic and time again, which has been immortalized by artists such Picasso, Léger and Chagall, among others.

In his series of works focused on the theme of “Life in Latin America,” Botero insists that “the vitality of the man can not be extinguished even in the worst conditions of poverty in slums, in places where life has no reason apparent. ” There are always towns and ordinary people in these paintings, reflecting a loyalty to his own culture as he vividly recalls his childhood homeland.

And finally, the section of works that relate to “People in Latin America” brings together a group of paintings whose landmarks were the color and sculptures from colonial art, direct and essential language of folk art and in what Concerning the purity of form, pre-Columbian art, for which Botero said: “You can find in my painting a world that I knew in my youth. It´s a kind of nostalgia that has become the focus of my work. I spent fifteen years in New York and lots of time in Europe, but this has not changed anything in my approach to Latin America, the nature and spirit. My connection with my country still exists. ”

Fernando Botero has given a new interpretation to the aesthetics of our time, with the creation and presentation of an original and highly personal work that contains many references to his own culture and his experiences as an artist in his life, but treated with a unique style that challenges the concept of beauty in our century, thanks to the monumental permanent resource, humor, irony and naivete, which combines elements of an admirable mastery of the craft and great talent.

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