Fernando Botero is an internationally famous artist who was born in Medellín in the department of Antioquia in Colombia in 1932. Originally, Botero was training to become a bullfighter at a matador school, but he moved to a Jesuit academy, where he developed an interest in the arts. Botero eventually began winning contests and having his paintings shown in galleries, such as the Galerias de Arte Foto-Estudio Leo. He went on to study at art academies around Europe. Throughout his life, his fame and reputation grew. His style of creating bulbous characters in sculptures and paintings remains well-respected.
In recognition of his continuing influence and importance in the contemporary Latin American arts, one of the more prestigious art awards for young Latin American artists was named after Fernando Botero -- the Fernando Botero Award, Fernando Botero's Award or the Fernando Botero Prize. The Fundacion Jovenes Artistas Colombianos, or Foundation of Young Colombian Artists, handed out this award every year from 2005 to 2008. Artists were required to be under 35 to compete for the award, and the competition culminated in a juried group art show with those that had been selected to participate in the competition. The award was considered one of the richest in Latin America, with a payout of $50,000 for the winner.
In the years that the Fernando Botero Award was given, the Foundation of Young Colombian Artists selected many notable young artists as participants and winners in the competition. In 2005, Miguel Cardenas (oil painting) and Yvette Slalom (painting and drawing) were participants in the competition, and 2006 saw the return of Yvette Slalom. The 2007 participants included Juan David Laserna (resin on canvas); Gonzalo Fuenmayor (drawing); Joel Grossman (painting); Jessica Angel (painting and drawing); Marco Mojica (scuplting and painting); and Juan Diaz B (photography), who won the special jury prize. In 2008, the last year of the competition, Diego Díaz (pencil), Joel Grossman (painting) and Javier Vanegas (photography) were among the participants.
In 2009, Botero was apparently unhappy with the state of the competition and criticized it to the press, saying, "The selected works seem very poor. It has really dismayed me to see such mediocre things selected." He went on to level criticism at the jury for having "given out the prizes badly," and added insult to injury by adding "I don't know why they chose such lamentable works." In response to this, the Foundation of Young Colombian Artists canceled the competition. Director María Elvira Pardo said to the press, "After reading these very unequivocal statements about young artists in Colombia, we decided that it was impossible to give out the prize that he wanted to give out."