South American Art

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Três Orixás by Djanira da Motta e Silva

Djanira da Motta e Silva pictured a very unusual Holy Trinity made of three deities from the Afro-Brazilian Pantheon. They are accompanied by...

Alicja Gluszek 17 March 2024

Portrait of Cecilia Vicuña in front of Quipu Womb 2017. Contemporary Art

Cecilia Vicuña: Melding Art, Activism, and Indigenous Wisdom

Cecilia Vicuña was the artist to occupy the Turbine Hall in Tate Modern from October 2022 to April 2023. The vast space has previously housed...

Natalia Tiberio 10 March 2024

South American Art

Painting Brazil: Vistas of João Batista da Costa

This collection of paintings in idyllic settings is the legacy of artist and illustrator João Batista da Costa. Batista da Costa was active in the...

Maya M. Tola 10 February 2024

Design

Turquoise: Art, Culture, and Myth of a Gemstone

The bright blue-green Turquoise has been valued and revered for centuries by all the cultures around the world that had access to it. Several...

Nadine Waldmann 30 December 2023

Muisca Raft, ca 600-1600, gold, Museo del Oro, Bogotá, Colombia. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Muisca Raft

The Muisca Raft is a masterpiece of Pre-Columbian art. It was created by the Muisca people who lived in a region of today’s Colombia. Muisca...

James W Singer 14 December 2023

Great Princess Mama Occollo, ca 1850-70, oil on canvas mounted on wood, Cuzco, Peru, Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO, USA. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Great Princess Mama Occollo

Great Princess Mama Occollo is an amazing masterpiece of South American art from the 19th century in the collection of the Denver Art Museum. It...

James W Singer 9 December 2023

Anita Malfatti, Silly Woman (Boba), 1916 South American Art

Modernism in Brazil: One Week That Has Changed It All

In 1922, Semana de Arte Moderna (The Modern Art Week) was held in Brazil. Marking the official beginning of Modernism in Brazil, the event lasted an...

Vithória Konzen Dill 15 November 2023

South American Art

Art and Ritual: Culture of the Enigmatic Moche People

The Moche were an ancient, Indigenous people of Andean Peru. They are considered to be one of the most influential civilizations of the ancient...

Marga Patterson 8 November 2023

Painting

10 Facts to Know About Fernando Botero

Fernando Botero was a Colombian figurative painter and sculptor. Once you see his art, you will never forget it. He depicted people and figures in...

Zuzanna Stańska 15 September 2023

South American Art

Fernando Botero and His Remakes of Classic Masterpieces

I must tell you something in secret – I love Fernando Botero’s works. Many of his works were inspired by classic art. Or maybe...

Zuzanna Stańska, Aniela Rybak 15 September 2023

History

Guide to Colombian History and Culture by Fernando Botero

Fernando Botero once called himself “the most Colombian of Colombian artists,” as the majority of his works explore traditional themes...

Kacper Grass 15 September 2023

Art Travels

Fernando Botero in Colombian Museums

Fernando Botero’s artworks are probably among the most recognizable in art history. It is enough to look once at one of his plump, “voluminous”...

Anthony Royer 15 September 2023