The body of the artist Fernando Boterohe died on friday At the age of 91 in Monaco, he will be buried in Colombia to honor him as one of the most important painters and sculptors of the 20th century. before the funeral in Italy, his family reported this Monday.

“We will take my father to Colombia for a final farewell, first to Bogotá, then to Medellín” (northwest), Juan Carlos Botero, one of his sons, told Colombia’s Blu Radio.

In a statement reported by local media, The family has assured that his remains will be in the capital on Thursday and will be transferred to his hometown later. where several events are expected in memory of the most famous Colombian painter and sculptor in the world.

According to his son, the artist expressed it he wanted to be taken to his country after his deathwhich took place while he was staying at his residence in Monaco after his health deteriorated due to pneumonia.

Fernando Botero dies: famous Colombian painter

“We are doing everything necessary to fulfill his last wishes (…) “He wanted to say goodbye to his people (…) he was grateful to the people of Colombia,” he added.

Botero is respected in Medellín for his intention to bring art closer to the common classes, donating dozens of works to museums and public parks, and for depicting the history of the city affected by the drug trade at the end of the last century.

Botero, a ‘poor art student’ who began to copy the great European artists

“He never asked for tribute,” but “it’s understandable that people want to say goodbye to him, and he wanted to say goodbye to his people,” added Juan Carlos Botero.

After the vigil in Colombia, His body will be cremated and will travel to the small Italian town of Pietrasanta, where he will be buried next to his wife, Greek artist Sophia Vari, who died in May 2023.

Together with the Nobel Prize for Literature Gabriel García Márquez, Botero was one of the most famous Colombians in the world. His creations, with sumptuous and slightly surreal forms, were sold for as much as 4.3 million dollars in the most prestigious galleries in cities such as New York and London.

His daughter Lina Botero told the media about it He continued to paint with watercolor until his last days, and “not with oil because it was difficult to stand”.

On the day of his death, Medellín declared seven days of mourning in memory of Botero, whose paintings and sculptures have been exhibited in Madrid, Paris, Barcelona, ​​Singapore and Venice, among others.