Fernando Montes
Fernando Montes | |
|---|---|
| Born | Fernando Montes Peñaranda 14 August 1930 La Paz, Bolivia |
| Died | 17 January 2007 (aged 76) London, UK |
| Education | Higher University of San Andrés Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando, 1959 Saint Martin's School of Art, 1960 Central School of Arts and Crafts, 1961 |
| Spouse |
Marcela Villegas Sánchez Bustamante
(m. 1960) |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | fernandomontes.co.uk |
Fernando Montes Peñaranda (14 August 1930 – 17 January 2007) was a Bolivian artist, painter and filmmaker based in London.[1][2]
Early life
Montes was born on 14 August 1930 in La Paz to Hugo Montes (died 1937), a lawyer and politician, and Eloísa Peñaranda Minchin.[2][3] Montes' father was later the leader of the Liberal Party.[2]
In 1942, aged 12, Montes and his family moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina to live with his maternal grandmother.[1][2] Montes attended the Escuela Argentina Modelo, and in 1945 he began an apprenticeship with Vicente Puig.[1][4] Upon finishing school Montes returned to La Paz and studied philosophy at the Higher University of San Andrés.[1][2][3]
Career
Bolivia
From 1951 to 1953 Montes worked with the filmmakers Augusto Roca and Jorge Ruiz Calvimonte, a childhood friend.[1][3][5] Together they travelled across the Andean Plateau, where Montes created a number of sketches of Mosetén people.[1][3][4] These sketches later became the basis for a series of paintings.[3][4][6] In 1951, Montes recorded the sound for Los Urus, the first ethnographic documentary made in Latin America.[7]
From 1953 onwards Montes painted professionally in Las Paz, where he first exhibited a series of portraits in 1956.[1][2][4] In 1959, Montes represented Bolivia at the 5th São Paulo Art Biennial.[1][2][5] The same year Montes was awarded a scholarship by the Spanish government to study for a year at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando in Madrid.[1][2][5][6]
London
In June 1960, Montes was invited to view the collection of Latin American Art at the British Museum in London.[6] Initially intending to stay in London for two weeks, Montes meet his future spouse Marcela Villegas Sánchez Bustamante.[3][4][8]
Deciding to stay in London, Montes enrolled at the Saint Martin's School of Art where he befriended Alicia Melamed Adams,[1][2][6][8] From 1960 to 1961, Montes studied at the Central School of Arts and Crafts.[1][2][6] In 1965, Montes had his first solo exhibition in London were he exhibited a series of 'pub paintings'.[1][3][6][8] That same year Montes visited Bolivia with his wife and three-year-old son, triggering a return to Bolivian subject matter.[1][3][6]
International recognition
In 1973, Montes was invited to participate in the "Bolivian Contemporary Painters" exhibition at the Musée d'Art Moderne de Paris.[3][4][6]
In 1977, Montes was awarded the first prize in painting at the 2nd INBO [a] Biennial.[5]
In 1999, Montes represented Bolivia at the 48th Venice Biennale.[5] The same year a retrospective exhibition of Montes' work was held at the National Museum of Art in La Paz.[5]
Legacy
A painting by Montes was kept in the office of Evo Morales during his Presidency.[10]
In 2019, the Museo Fernando Montes was opened in La Paz by the Fundación Cultural del Banco Central de Bolivia.[11]
Personal life
In 1960, Montes married Marcela Villegas Sánchez Bustamante,[b] a Bolivian secretary to the Colombian ambassador.[2][3][13] Montes and Villegas had two children.[2][8]
On 17 January 2007 Montes died from cancer in London aged 77.[1][2]
Publications
- Montes Peñaranda, Fernando (2023). Detrás de los Andes: diario de viaje de un artista [Behind the Andes: an artist's travel diary]. La Paz: Plural Editores. ISBN 9789917625414.
Notes
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Fraser, Valerie (18 April 2007). "Obituary: Fernando Montes". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Buckman, David (6 February 2007). "Fernando Montes: Painter of the Bolivian High Andes". The Independent. London. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Montes, Fernando (May 1999). "Fernando Montes On Fernando Montes". Fernando Montes. Archived from the original on 19 July 2025. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f "Fernando Montes: Artist whose travels influenced his work and reflected his spiritual temperament". The Times. London. 21 March 2007. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Artespacio CAF rinde homenaje póstumo a Fernando Montes Peñaranda" [Artespacio CAF pays posthumous tribute to Fernando Montes Peñaranda]. CAF: Actualidad: Noticias (in Spanish). CAF. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Fernando Montes artist". Ben Uri Research Unit. London: Ben Uri Gallery & Museum. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ "Espacio Patiño exhibe el documental "Los urus" de Jorge Ruiz". RC Noticias de Bolivia (in Spanish). RC Cultura. 10 March 2021. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ a b c d Decho, Pam; Diamond, Claire (1998). "The Contemporary Period". Latin Americans in London: a Select List of Prominent Latin Americans in London C.1800–1996. London: Institute of Latin American Studies, University of London. pp. 91–125. ISBN 1900039168. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ Dios, Alicia (2016). "Bienales de Arte INBO (1975/1977/1981) como plataforma para el surgimiento de la nueva pintura boliviana" (in Spanish). University of Buenos Aires. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
- ^ "Art based enquiry field trips: visit to Fernando Montes' studio". The Essex Collection of Art from Latin America: News. Colchester, Essex: University of Essex. 2015. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ "MUSEO FERNANDO MONTES". Fundación Cultural (in Spanish). La Paz, Bolivia: Fundación Cultural del Banco Central de Bolivia. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ "Familia". The Essex Collection of Art from Latin America: Collections Search. Colchester, Essex: University of Essex. Retrieved 26 February 2026.
- ^ "Fernando Montes and Marcela De Villegas [Marriage Index]". England and Wales Civil Registration Indexes. 5c. London: General Register Office: 525. 1960.