When I was growing up, my parents had an enormous Fernando Botero poster in the center of our kitchen, where we spent most of our time. As a figurative painter whose work is often rooted in whimsy and satire, I find it hard to imagine that it didn’t have a greater impact on me than I’m even aware. To this day, he is one of my favorite painters, and I often look to his work for a creative spark. I visit his painting Dancing in Colombia (which inspired this oil sketch) whenever I’m at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City. Each time, I find something new.
