Torero

It can be rightly said that Armando Morales has become one of the most beloved artists of Latin America, recognized throughout the region and the world beyond. His extraordinary body of work with their exquisitely worked surfaces and beautifully rendered atmosphere is unmistakable. Though much of his work has been abstract in nature, he has increasingly developed the figural. In effect, many of his most known pieces contain classically rendered nude forms, sculpture like in their simplicity and powerful massing.
In the present lot Morales has approached a subject painted by many artists, the bullfight. The torero in Latin cultures is a mythic figure and scenes of the corrida have a large pictorial history, yet Morales' technique allows this scene to look fresh. The modulation of color and gradation of shadow aid to convey a dual sense of movement which is in turn reflected in the actions of the two figures. Intent in each-other and removed from the cheering crowds, one can sense their muscles and pumping hearts, their mutual passion and respect. This work elucidates the poem of man and bull that is the corrida, one that is intrinsic to the bullring and to the Latin culture.