Colombian artist Fernando Botero is making history. For the first time, his works will be exhibited in Azerbaijan, in the capital city of Baku. The exhibition, titled “The Triumph of Form,” will open its doors on Oct. 31 at the iconic Heydar Aliyev Center, the chosen venue to expand the legacy of the Colombian master.
The exhibition has been conceived as part of the major festival Fly to Baku. Art Weekend. Sense the Future NOW. There, more than 100 works by Botero — spanning nearly seven decades of artistic production, from his early watercolors depicting bullfighting scenes to his celebrated oil paintings and sculptures — will be shown for the first time in Azerbaijan.
The Triumph of Form: Fernando Botero’s exhibition arrives in Azerbaijan
The exhibition, The Triumph of Form, marks a milestone in the international dissemination of the Colombian master’s artistic legacy. This show will arrive in Azerbaijan thanks to the collaboration between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the Fernando Botero Foundation.
The artist’s daughter, Lina Botero — who directs the Fernando Botero Foundation — highlighted that the Heydar Aliyev Center “is the most important museum in the region” to host her father’s work, and that the choice of Baku reflects a desire to cross geographical and cultural boundaries.
The museum has curated the exhibition to showcase the different creative periods of Botero’s career: His early works (such as bullfighting watercolors painted at age 14), his evolution toward large-format canvases, his sculptural explorations beginning in 1973, and his signature use of “volume” as a unique aesthetic language.
Lina Botero also shared that the exhibition in Azerbaijan marks the beginning of an Asian tour that will continue in Singapore, Seoul, and Taipei throughout 2026, further consolidating the presence of Colombian art in some of the most prominent cultural venues on the continent.
Fernando Botero’s works: A journey around the world
Before reaching Azerbaijan, Fernando Botero’s works have traveled through many of the world’s leading cultural centers. His art has been exhibited in Paris, New York, Rome, Madrid, Tokyo, Beijing, Istanbul, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Dubai, and Bogota, among many other destinations. Each of these exhibitions has reaffirmed the international scope of his art and his ability to connect with audiences across diverse cultures and contexts.
Among his most memorable shows are the open-air exhibitions on the Champs-Élysées in Paris and the Castellana Park in Madrid, as well as the permanent collections at the Museo de Antioquia and the Museo Botero in Bogota. In all of them, the artist managed to make his distinctive “Botero world” — filled with irony, sensuality, and social critique — into a universal visual language.
International context and local relevance
Botero’s arrival in Azerbaijan comes at a key moment for the country’s contemporary art scene, which seeks to position itself as a cultural bridge between Europe and Asia. The fact that a Latin American artist of such prestige is featured in this cultural agenda reinforces Baku’s growing reputation as an emerging global art hub.