botero

Fernando Botero is one of my favorite artists in the world, possibly of all time. My heart leaped two miles high when I learned there was an exhibit of his work in Lima, and rushed to it.

The exhibit is called "El Dolor de Colombia" and features paintings and drawings that depict violence. There is much to be said about the subject matter of the works. With titles like "Massacre," "Kidnapping," and "Woman Crying," the moral intension and emotional intensity behind this show did not escape me.

Yet, to expose myself to be the sybarite that I am, I was absolutely mesmerized by the man's art. The lines, shades, and textures of the paints and graphite hit me as hard as the bullets that pierced his imaginary subjects. When Botero used a pencil to draw the fine lines of a woman's hair, I wondered what note would sound if I were to pluck one of the metallic strands of graphite.

Come visit me and see Botero.