Art News

Foundation Scraps Botero Prize Over Artist’s Comments

BOGOTA (EFE).- The Fernando Botero Prize will no longer be given out due to the artist’s recent comments about juries and the quality of the works that won the award, Fundacion Jovenes Artistas Colombianos director Maria Elvira Pardo told the press. The decision to stop handing out the prize, which carried a $50,000 cash award, was made by the foundation’s management council several days ago, the El Tiempo newspaper reported on its Web site. The foundation cited Botero’s statements to Arcadia magazine that he was unhappy because the winning works “seemed very bad” as the reason for its decision. Colombia’s most famous painter, known worldwide for his depiction of