Plaza Botero
Monday, September 11
During our first week in Medellín in September we took part in a Free Walking Tour — a guided city tour. We walked through downtown Medellín with our group and our guide. Among other things, we passed the Plaza Bolero — a public square opposite the Medellín Art Museum. The square is named after the famous Colombian artist Fernando Botero.
Artworks by artist Botero can be seen both in the art museum “Museo de Antioquia” and on the public square in front of it. Fernando Botero was born in Medellin in 1932 and became a worldwide known artist. He created many paintings and bronze statues of voluminous people, animals and objects. In the “Museo de Antioquia” in Medellín, an entire floor of the Museum is dedicated to the artists work and visitors can admire Botero’s paintings and drawings here. On the square in front of the museum there are some big metal sculptures that represent Botero's style quite well. While you have to pay to visit the museum, you can check out the Botero statues on the Plaza de Botero for free. These statues are very popular with both tourists and Colombians. During the day the square is busy and many people have their photos taken in front of the sculptures. During our city tour, we as a group also spent some time on Botero Square to take photos. Since a visit to the museum was not part of the city tour, Christoph and I visited the Museo de Antioquia on our own the following weekend and admired the many unique paintings by Fernando Botero.
Just a few days later we heard the news that Fernando Botero had died. The next few days in Medellín, Colombians mourned the loss of their beloved Colombian artist Fernando Botero. People gathered across the city to remember him and celebrate his life and his work. With the artist's death, the paintings and drawings in the museum and the sculptures in front of the museum are now more than ever an important part of the city of Medellín.
