Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt (23 October 1919 – 14 May 1995) was a Colombian
sculptor
Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...
. At the time of his death in 1995 he was recognized as one of the most important sculptors in Colombia and
Latin America
Latin America or
* french: Amérique Latine, link=no
* ht, Amerik Latin, link=no
* pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...
. Most of the major cities in Colombia have statues sculpted by Arenas Betancourt.
Arenas Betancourt died on 14 May 1995 in the municipality of Caldas, located in the southern end of the Valley of Aburrá and part of the Medellín Metropolitan Area.
His
bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...
Medellín
Medellín ( or ), officially the Municipality of Medellín ( es, Municipio de Medellín), is the second-largest city in Colombia, after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburrá Valley, a central re ...
* Sculptural Complex
Vargas Swamp Lancers
''Vargas Swamp Lancers'', or Monument to the Lancers ( es, Monumento a los Lanceros), is a large sculptural complex realized by Colombian artist Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt and by engineer Guillermo Gonzalez Zuleta in the department of Boyacá ( Co ...
near
Paipa
Paipa is a town and municipality in the Tundama Province, a part of the Colombian department of Boyacá. Paipa borders Duitama, Firavitoba, Tibasosa, Sotaquirá and Tuta.Monument to Effort'' in
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...
Valledupar
Valledupar () is a city and municipality in northeastern Colombia. It is the capital of Caesar Department. Its name, ''Valle de Upar'' (Valley of Upar), was established in honor of the Amerindian cacique who ruled the valley; ''Cacique Upar''. T ...
*''Monument to the founders'' in
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
(installed 1965)
*''Statue of
Simón Bolívar
Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...
'' in
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
(installed 1963)
Additionally to sculpture, Arenas Betancourt worked in printmaking and book illustration.
Gallery
Image:Monumento pantano de vargas, completo. 2006.JPG,
Vargas Swamp Lancers
''Vargas Swamp Lancers'', or Monument to the Lancers ( es, Monumento a los Lanceros), is a large sculptural complex realized by Colombian artist Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt and by engineer Guillermo Gonzalez Zuleta in the department of Boyacá ( Co ...
, bronze, steel and concrete, 33 m height,
Paipa
Paipa is a town and municipality in the Tundama Province, a part of the Colombian department of Boyacá. Paipa borders Duitama, Firavitoba, Tibasosa, Sotaquirá and Tuta.Boyacá
Image:2018 Monumento a la raza de Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt - La Alpujarra - Medellín.jpg, Monumento a la Raza in
Medellín
Medellín ( or ), officially the Municipality of Medellín ( es, Municipio de Medellín), is the second-largest city in Colombia, after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburrá Valley, a central re ...
Image:Monumento al Esfuerzo (Plaza de Bolivar).JPG, Monument to Effort, bronze, steel and concrete, 28 m height,
Armenia, Colombia
Armenia () is the capital of Quindio Department. Armenia is a medium-sized city and part of the " coffee axis" along with Pereira and Manizales. It is one of the main centers of the national economy and of the Colombian coffee growing axis. ...
Image:UdeA-MuseoUniversitario-la esculturaEl hombre creador de energia.JPG, Man, creator of Energy, bronze, steel and concrete, 18 m height, located in
University of Antioquia
The University of Antioquia ( es, Universidad de Antioquia), also called UdeA, is a public, departmental, coeducational, research university located primarily in the city of Medellín, Antioquia, Colombia, with regional campuses in Amalfi, Andes ...
Image:Bolívar Cóndor, de Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt - Manizales.jpg, Bolivar
Condor
Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua ''kuntur''. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere.
They are:
* The Andean condor (''Vu ...
bronze and concrete, located in the main square of
Manizales
Manizales () is a city in central Colombia. It is the capital of the Department of Caldas, and lies near the Nevado del Ruiz volcano.
Currently, the city is the main center for the production of Colombian coffee and an important hub for higher ...
Liberty
Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom.
In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...
Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
, located in
Barranquilla
Barranquilla () is the capital district of Atlántico Department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean Coast region; as of 2018 it had a population of 1,206,319, making it Co ...
Image:El Flautista- Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt.JPG, The
Flute
The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedles ...
player, concrete and plaster. University of Antioquia
Image:Bolivar Desnudo.jpg, Naked Bolivar, Pereira
Image:Jose Eustasio Rivera.JPG, Monument to
Jose Eustasio Rivera
Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods.
* Jose ben Abin
* Jose ben Akabya
*Jose the Galil ...
,
Neiva
Neiva () is the capital of the Department of Huila. It is located in the valley of the Magdalena River in south central Colombia with a population of about 357,392 inhabitants. It is one of the most important cities in southern Colombia, mainly ...
Image:Los Potros.JPG, Los Potros, a tribute to José Eustasio Rivera, in Neiva
Image:Aeropuerto_Bogot%C3%A1_Eldorado_Escultura_La_oraci%C3%B3n_al_proscrito_de_Rodrigo_Arenas_Betancourt.jpg, La oración al proscrito in
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
Image:Monumento a La Vida, de Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt - Medellín, 2017.jpg, Monument to life in Medellín
Image:Prometeo Encadenado de Rodrigo Arenas Betancur-Medellin.JPG, Prometheus Bound, bronze
Image:Vista frontal monumento a la Gaitana.jpg, La Gaitana Monument in Neiva
Image:Monumento a Los Fundadores.JPG, Monument to the Founders in
Villavicencio
Villavicencio () is a city and municipality in Colombia. Capital of Meta Department, it was founded on April 6, 1840. The city had an urban population of approximately 531,275 inhabitants in 2018.https://www.dane.gov.co/files/varios/informacio ...