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 is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

. 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 metalloid ...

statues are characterized by their enormous proportions and dramatic expression. Examples of his artwork are: *'' Naked Bolívar'' in Pereira *'' Monumento a la Raza'', bronze and concrete, 38 m height, located in

La Alpujarra Administrative Center La Alpujarra Administrative Center, officially known as the José María Córdova Administrative Center, is an urban complex of government buildings built in the 1980s for the administration of the Antioquia Department, Antioquia department and Me ...

Medellín Medellín ( ; or ), officially the Special District of Science, Technology and Innovation of Medellín (), is the List of cities in Colombia, second-largest city in Colombia after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia Departme ...

* Sculptural Complex Vargas Swamp Lancers near Paipa is the largest sculpture in Colombia. *'' Monument to Effort'' in

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

*'' Monument to the Marching Revolution'' in

Valledupar Valledupar () is a city and municipality in northeastern Colombia. It is the capital of Cesar Department. Its name, ''Valle de Upar'' (Valley of Upar), was established in honor of the Amerindian cacique who ruled the valley; ''Cacique Upar''. The ...

*''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 Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...

(installed 1965) *''Statue of

Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24July 178317December 1830) was a Venezuelan statesman and military officer who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama, and Bol ...

'' in

(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, bronze, steel and concrete, 33 m height, Paipa, Boyacá Image:2018 Monumento a la raza de Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt - La Alpujarra - Medellín.jpg, Monumento a la Raza in

Image:Monumento al Esfuerzo (Plaza de Bolivar).JPG, Monument to Effort, bronze, steel and concrete, 28 m height, Armenia, Colombia 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 Image:Bolívar Cóndor, de Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt - Manizales.jpg, Bolivar Condor bronze and concrete, located in the main square of

Manizales Manizales () is a city in central Colombia. It is the capital of the Caldas Department, 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 importa ...

Image:Catedral Barranquilla Cristo Libertador.jpg, Liberty Christ, located in

Barranquilla Barranquilla () is the capital district of the Atlántico department in Colombia. It is located near the Caribbean Sea and is the largest city and third port in the Caribbean region of Colombia, Caribbean coast region; as of 2018, it had a popul ...

Image:El Flautista- Rodrigo Arenas Betancourt.JPG, The Flute Player, concrete and plaster. University of Antioquia Image:Bolivar Desnudo.jpg, Naked Bolivar, Pereira Image:Jose Eustasio Rivera.JPG, Monument to José Eustasio Rivera,

Neiva Neiva () is the capital and most populated city of the Department of Huila, south central Colombia. It is located in the valley of the Magdalena River with a municipal population of 388,299. It is one of the most important cities in southern Co ...

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

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. The capital of Meta Department, it was founded on April 6, 1840. The municipality had a population of 531,275 in 2018. The city is located at 4°08'N, 73°40'W, 75 km (about 45 ...

References

People from Antioquia Department 1919 births 1995 deaths 20th-century Colombian sculptors {{Colombia-sculptor-stub