Homage to Botero
16th January 2025 – 16th February 2025
Opera Gallery Singapore
2 Orchard Turn #02-16
ION Orchard
Singapore 238801
Opera Gallery in Singapore is pleased to present ‘Homage to Botero,’ a solo exhibition celebrating the extraordinary life and artistic legacy of the late Colombian master, Fernando Botero (1932–2023). Presented during Singapore Art Week 2025, this monumental exhibition presents paintings, sculptures, and works on paper showcasing the artist’s iconic “Boterismo” aesthetic characterised by whimsical, voluminous figures that demonstrate mastery of form with astute social critique ranging in tone from humorous to sensual to starkly political.
In this exhibition, Botero’s evocative paintings, sculptures, and drawings tell a nuanced story about the artist’s life and incisive observations on society and culture, which were shaped both by his world travels as well as his Latin American heritage. Each artwork in the exhibition is a testament to his superb ability to bridge the playful and the profound–marrying a playful sense of whimsy with deeper reflections on life’s complexities – from joy and melancholy to beauty and excess.
Courtesy of Opera Gallery Singapore
The underpinnings of Botero’s aesthetic development and worldview began in Medellín, Colombia, where the artist was born in 1932. In this Postwar Colombian environment characterised by staunch Catholicism, social rigidity, and political instability, Botero began his artistic exploration–effectively combining motifs and inspiration drawn from his lived experience within Colombian culture and his appreciation for Renaissance and Baroque artists to establish his own distinctive artistic vocabulary.
As a visual poet of daily life, Botero’s pioneering figurative artworks, still life paintings and sculptures serve as vivid portrayals of the characters and scenes Botero encountered throughout his life. Through his portraits of everyday people, richly coloured still life compositions, or art historical reinterpretations, his work provides a profound reflection on the richness and contradictions of daily life, inviting viewers to reconsider societal norms—of beauty, power, and
identity—while offering a celebration of the ordinary.
Courtesy of Opera Gallery Singapore
“We’re thrilled to present ‘Homage to Botero’ at Opera Gallery in Singapore”, said the gallery’s Director Stephane Le Pelletier. “With this exhibition, we pay tribute to the sincerity in Botero’s work and the timeless themes relating to society and the human condition that he explored throughout his lifetime. With his singular style and prolific body of work that possessed both an incisive sense of humour as well as profound social commentary on life, Botero’s impact
on the art world is immeasurable”.
oil on canvas, 182.9 x 130.5 cm
Courtesy of Opera Gallery Singapore
About Fernando Botero
Perhaps the most widely recognised and celebrated Latin American contemporary artist of the twentieth century, Fernando Botero (1932-2023) was born in Medellín, Colombia and transformed the Latin American art landscape. He gained worldwide acclaim for his distinctive “Boterismo” style characterised by smooth, inflated shapes with discernible shifts in volume and scale. His works often commented on–and sometimes criticised–subject matter including but not limited to economic disparity, sensuality and pleasure, religion, political instability, and the monotony of daily life.
Homage to Botero opens on the 16th of January 2025 until the 16th of February 2025 at Opera Gallery Singapore
©2024 Opera Gallery
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