Collection particulière, Allemagne
Marlborough Gallery, New York
Vente : Christie's, Los Angeles, 5 décembre 2000, lot 132
Acquis lors de cette vente par le propriétaire actuel

New York, Marlborough Gallery, Fernando Botero - La Corrida : The Bullfight Paintings, 1985, no. 3
Munich, Kunsthalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung; Brême, Kunsthalle; Francfort, Schirn Kunsthalle, Fernando Botero : Bilder - Zeichnungen - Skulpturen; Madrid, Reina Sofia, Fernando Botero : Pinturas - Dibujos - Esculturas (exposition itinérante), 1986-1987, no. 42
Londres, Crane Kalman Gallery, Essence of Humour, 1997

José Manuel Caballero Bonald, Botero - La Corrida, Madrid, 1989, reproduit p. 173
Jean Cau, Fernando Botero : La Corrida, Paris, 1990, no. XV, reproduit p. 29
Edward J. Sullivan & Jean-Marie Tasset, Fernando Botero, Monograph & Catalogue raisonné, Paintings 1975-1990, Lausanne, 2000, no. 1984/4, p. 349

The canvas is not lined. There is some very minor paint-loss around the extreme edges of the canvas, possibly due to rubbing and visible to the naked eye. Examination under UV light reveals a small uneven area of retouching around the left arm of the small figure. There is a 1cm-long vertical line of retouching towards the right edge, parallel with the large figure's hand, and a small area of retouching in the black pigment just above his left shoulder. There are three vertical 1.5cm-long lines of retouching towards the right edge, parallel with the large figure's nose, as well as in the upper right corner and some tiny spots of retouching along the upper edge. This work is in very good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

signed 'Botero' (lower right), oil on canvas. Painted in 1984.

 

Antonio Chavez Chavito s'inscrit dans la grande série que Botero consacra au monde de la tauromachie dans les années 1980. Perpétuant la prestigieuse tradition picturale des scènes de corrida après Goya, Manet, Picasso, Botero renouvelle le genre en choisissant de peindre également ce qui se passe hors et autour de l'arène, avant, pendant et après la corrida : les rituels de préparation des matadors, les picadors attendant d'intervenir, le public d'aficionados où se mêlent plusieurs élégantes, les célébrations musicales pour chanter la gloire du matador, etc...

Botero choisit ici de s'attacher au moment solennel où le matador s'apprête à entrer dans l'arène. Coiffé de la "montera" (le chapeau traditionnel) qu'on distingue à peine sur l'arrière plan sombre du tableau, Antonio Chavez Chavito est accompagné de son assistant ("peone"). C'est un moment de concentration, d'angoisse et de solitude pour le matador avant les honneurs du combat. L'artiste choisit de représenter le matador descendu de son piédestal glorieux et pour mieux cerner sa fragilité. De même que la corrida en Colombie donne un vibrant exemple du devenir de l'héritage espagnol dans la culture sud-américaine, Antonio Chavez Chavito de Botero permet également de mesurer la permanence de la tradition picturale du siècle d'or espagnol dans l'art de peindre du plus grand peintre colombien du XXe siècle : Botero peintre de l'âme compose un portrait de matador comme Zurbarán peignait ses Natures mortes ou certains de ses portraits sur une scène métaphysique où tout décor est supprimé. "Botero n'est pas méchant. La dilatation de ses personnages inviterait à croire qu'ils sont doués de pouvoirs écrasants alors qu'il n'est en rien. Leur énormité est au contraire douce et hantée d'une secrète faiblesse. Botero les ridiculise t-il quand son pinceau lui chante ? Oui mais, du coup, nous les découvrons plus fragiles et l'on voudrait être un géant gargantuesque et gullivérien encore plus énorme qu'eux..." (Jean Cau, Fernando Botero La Corrida, Paris, la Bibliothèque des Arts, 1990, p. 28)

 

Antonio Chavez Chavito is part the large series Botero devoted to the world of bull-fighting in the 1980s.  Perpetuating the prestigious pictorial tradition of corrida scenes after Goya, Manet and Picasso, Botero rejuvenates the genre by choosing also to depict what happens outside and around the arena: the matador's preparation rituals, the picadors waiting to intervene, the audience of aficionados mingling with fashionable women, the musical celebrations praising the glory of the matador, etc...

Botero chooses here to focus on the solemn moment when the matador prepares to enter the arena. Coiffed with a "montera" (traditional hat) that we can barely make out against the dark background of the painting, Antonio Chavez Chavito is accompanied by his assistant ("peone"). It is a moment of concentration, anxiety and solitude for the matador before the glory of combat. The artist chooses to bring the matador down from his glorious pedestal in order better to discern his fragility. Just as the corrida in Columbia offers a vibrant example of the future of Spanish heritage in South American culture, Botero's Antonio Chavez Chavito also allows us to consider the continuation of the pictorial tradition of the Spanish Golden Age in the art of the greatest Columbian painter of the 20^th Century: Botero the painter of the soul composes a portrait of a matador just as Zurbaran painted still lives or certain of his portraits in a metaphysical scene in which all decor has been erased. "Botero is not malicious. The enlargement of his figures could suggest that they are endowed with expansive power while he has none. Their enormity is on the other hand mild and evokes a secret weakness. Does Botero ridicule them with his brush? Yes but, we therefore find them to be more fragile and we wish we could be a gargantuan Gulliveresque giant even more enormous than they are..." (Jean Cau, Fernando Botero La Corrida, Paris, Bibliothèque des Arts, 1990, p. 28)