Botero! Larger than Life
We have spent the past two days visiting five of Bogota’s top museums and cultural attractions.
Museo Botero, features 125 pieces of Colombian artist Fernando Botero and 85 pieces from world renowned artists such as Picasso, Degas, Chagall, Monet … it is one of the best museums Ol and I have ever visited, anywhere in the world.
Botero donated the works, on the condition that they be shown free of charge. The collection is housed in a beautiful colonial mansion which was renovated to display this international art collection. The museum is considered to be one of the most important in South America.
The Botero museum is located in the La Candelaria neighborhood, which is the historic center of Bogota.
Botero’s work brings large smiles and joy to visitors just as Botero’s large characters fill his canvas and sculptures.
We also explored the Colombian National Museum of Art. It is the oldest museum in Colombia and is housed in a beautiful historic stone and brick fortress, which functioned as a prison until 1946.
In 1975, the building was restored and adapted for the museum and now houses a collection of over 20,000 pieces of history, art, and culture with pieces from 10,000 BC to the 21st century.
The 104 prison cells have been made into galleries housing beautiful works of art. The renovation of the space from one of suffering to one of beauty is not lost on visitors.
The National Museum is engaging and tells Colombia’s story through it’s art and artifacts and is inclusive of all of the cultures that contributed to this beautiful and diverse country.
