Colombia - Larger than Life

December 31-January 2

Hello everyone!

Colombia is associated with many things: some positive (salsa dancing), others less so (cocaine). It would be strange to associate it with this person, though…

Mona Lisa: not Colombian

Colombia: also associated with salsa

Can you name a famous Colombian? Probably. You may say Pablo Escobar. Others will roar, “Shakira, Shakira”. Those who like football will point to James Rodriguez or the man with the hair, Carlos Valderrama.

Valderrama played 111 times for Colombia

The notorious drug lord is more associated with Medellin than Bogota

There are likely two other prominent names which will come to mind if you are into literature or art. If you appreciate the former, you’ll certainly have heard of Gabriel García Márquez. Writer of One Hundred Years of Solitude, ‘Gabo’ is a Nobel Prize winner and lends his name to a cultural complex near the historic centre of Bogotá. 

The centre has close ties to Mexico, where the author died in 2014

I meant to add a picture of the Journalist Park which honours
Garcia Marquez. Instead I seem to have chosen Park of the Hippies.
This is an interesting place in its own right, as it is the only place
in the city where you can legally smoke marijuana.

Those who love art would know doubt have an opinion on one of Colombia’s other favourite sons: Fernando Botero. The artist, who died last year, has a unique and instantly recognisable style. This was evident when the guide asked us on a walking tour of the city to describe his work. The almost unanimous response…FAT.

Mother Superior. Mega Mother Superior.

Would the famous artist Cezanne be happy with this? 

Botero’s humans certainly seem larger than life. That guide tried to steer us towards understanding that all elements of his work are large, including his still life efforts and other paintings of things such as guitars. 

'Still life' in Spanish is 'naturaleza muerta'.
Muerta means dead. Confusing...

My ukulele would be hard to play if it had that girth! 

Like García Márquez, Botero is not from Bogotá, though has strong connections with the city. Both lived there in the period after the end of the Second World War before moving elsewhere, eventually to Europe. During his life, Botero amassed quite the art collection, including pieces from just about every famous European 19th or 20th century artist you know.

This is a Monet. I get it. It's amazing.

This is a Picasso. I don't get it. It looks like
something an 8 year old could produce.

This art collection from the likes of Picasso, Monet and Dali forms part of the Botero Museum. There are two of these, actually: the other is in Medellín, his birthplace. Botero originally donated all of his work to the Bogotá gallery, apparently due to bureaucracy holding up the efforts to make a gallery in Medellín. It was later split between the two cities, which I’ve been told have quite a large rivalry.

Botero also dabbled in extra-large sculptures

I was deeply disturbed by this until researching the context.
This is Leda and the Swan, a story of how Zeus,
in the form of a swan, seduces a Spartan queen. 

Botero had two demands when handing over his art. Firstly, that he would design the layout himself and that it couldn’t be changed, even after his death. Secondly, and more pertinently for visitors like me, he insisted that the entrance was free, so that everyone could enjoy the art.

Also within the complex is the Money Museum

The grounds are impeccably clean

I find his work very interesting. From the political messages hidden in his paintings connected to Colombia’s conflict to his large Jesus on the cross, Botero takes on many different themes in his pieces. One of his most famous, his interpretation of the Mona Lisa, is one of the earlier pictures in this blog.

Most of his work was produced in the 1990s,
arguably at the height of conflict within Colombia  

Botero's interpretation of the crucifixion

Both García Márquez and Botero left Colombia, and specifically Bogotá, soon after arriving when they were younger. The reason for García Márquez, who was studying at university whilst starting a career as a journalist, leaving was due to his university being closed in 1948. The closure was due to riots known as Bogatazo, which paralysed the city after the assassination of a popular, left-leaning presidential candidate called Gaitán. 

Men were rallied to come to the centre by radio stations

Clearing the damage, which ran into
millions of dollars, the following day 

One of the consequences of this was that much of downtown Bogotá was destroyed. Many colonial-era buildings disappeared, transforming the area. In time, larger and taller buildings which possess little charm or character have replaced them, with only some churches and larger government buildings remaining.

The images are from the City of Bogota museum,
a free and interesting place

Bogota's oldest church, San Francisco, survived the riots

Gaitán still has supporters today, who are adamant that Colombia’s subsequent troubles and struggles would have been avoided if he had been afforded the opportunity to run the country. Who knows, maybe he would be as renowned as some of Colombia’s other most famous people. Botero may even have made a special picture of him…

You can't get this close to the one in Paris! I actually got too
close to a different painting and set off an alarm :-)

Bogota and Bolero: larger than life

Love you all,

Matt