Pedro José Figueroa

Simón Bolívar, one of Pedro José Figueroa's portraits

Pedro José Figueroa (1770–1838) was a Colombian portrait painter.

Early life[]

The portrait painter Pedro José Figueroa was born in 1770 in Bogotá, Colombia, where he later died in 1838. It is believed that he is a descendant of a family of artists first made famous during the 17th century. Figueroa received his first painting lessons at the studio of . After completing his studies Figueroa founded his own painting studio where he taught various students including painter , the historian , and his own sons.

Works[]

Figueroa’s first major work came in 1804 when he painted the Viceroy Amar y Borbon who was a widely popular figure at the time. In 1813 he painted the only known portrait of Dr. and later published in “Papel Periodico Ilustrado”. In 1835 Figuroa touched up the famous painting of the “” originally painted by . Paintings of the Quinta de Bolívar, Bolívar portraits, the painting of “La Santisima Trinidad” are currently housed in the Cathedral of Bogota which also the portraits of Brion, Canon Duquesne, , and the archbishops and .

Legacy[]

While the work of Figueroa was not numerous, they are interesting in that the painting and the painter himself lived at a crucial time when a colony was being shaped into a republic. Figueroa’s portraits give us a sense of who was important and influential to the period and place.

Sources[]

• Ricaurte, Dr. Carmen Ortega. “PEDRO JOSE FIGUEROA” Diccionario de artistas en Colombia 1ª Edición. < http://www.colarte.com/colarte/conspintores.asp?idartista=1011>