
David Manzur: 70 years of artistic career and an eternity of legacy.
At 93 years old, David Manzur continues to delight us with his painting as if it were the first day, but this year marks 70 years since the beginning
The constructivist dramatism embodied in Manzur’s painting is unmatched, he has the ability to combine traditional art with modernist painting, supported by important references in painting without ever losing his personal imprint, making him an expert in drawing, painting, anatomy and composition.
Acrylic and collage on canvas
80 x 60 cm
31 1/2 x 23 5/8 in
Acrylic and collage on canvas
80 x 60 cm
31 1/2 x 23 5/8 in
Oil on canvas
130 x 160 cm
51 1/8 x 63 in
Oil on canvas
160 x 200 cm
63 x 78 3/4 in
“Manzur 22” (lower right).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
80 x 60 cm
31 1/2 x 23 5/8 in
Manzur 2020″ (lower right)
Acrylic and collage on canvas
55 x 65 cm
21 5/8 x 25 5/8 in
“Manzur 2020” (lower left).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
150 x 100 cm
59 1/8 x 39 3/8 in
“Manzur 21” (lower right).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
55 x 65 cm
21 5/8 x 25 5/8 in
“Manzur 18” (lower right).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
60 x 130 cm
63 x 51 1/8 in
“Manzur 14” (lower right)
Acrylic and collage on canvas
160 x 200 cm
63 x 78 3/4 in
“Manzur 22” (lower left).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
80 x 60 cm
31 1/2 x 23 5/8 in
“Manzur 2021” (Lower left).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
60 x 80 cm
23 5/8 x 31 1/2 in
“Manzur 21” (lower right).
Charcoal, pastel and collage on paper
75 x 110 cm
“Manzur 14” (lower right)
Acrylic and collage on canvas
160 x 200 cm
63 x 78 3/4 in
“Manzur 2020” (lower left).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
55 x 65 cm
21 5/8 x 25 5/8 in
Acrylic and collage on canvas
170 x 175 cm
66 7/8 x 68 7/8 in
Acrylic and collage on canvas
100 x 130 cm
39 3/8 x 51 1/8 in
“Manzur 21” (lower left).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
150 x 100 cm
59 1/8 x 39 3/8 in
“Manzur 14” (lower left).
Acrylic and collage on canvas
160 x 200 cm
63 x 78 3/4 in
“Manzur 98” (lower right).
Acrylic on canvas
80 x 60 cm
31 1/2 x 23 5/8 in
David Manzur was born in Neira, a mountainous region in northwestern Colombia, on December 14, 1929. During 1934, his parents decided to move to Lebanon as a consequence of an economic crisis, but not before a stopover in Spain. So it was that already on the trip the Civil War broke out, completely changing the family’s plans and almost forcing them to settle elsewhere, more specifically in the port of Bata, capital of Spanish Guinea (now Equatorial Guinea), Africa.
When the Spanish Civil War ended in 1939, it seemed that they could now stick to their original plan, but that same year saw the first fighting of World War II. Their parents, having the safety and education of their children as a priority, decided to board in religious schools in the Canary Islands. David Manzur remembers how strict the school seemed to him, and how difficult it was to be so far away from his family (they were 17 days away). But it wasn’t all bad, because that’s where he had his first approach to painting.
In the school dining room there were several paintings by great Spanish painters: in the dining room there were two paintings by Zurbarán and one by Velásquez. There, observing and unknowingly, this approach would awaken in him an interest in art.
By the end of 1946, he and his family returned to Colombia and settled in the municipality of Armenia. Later, in 1951, he would go to Bogotá, to the Escuela de Bellas Artes, but it would not take him long to abandon his studies there and so he became one of the first students of the Escuela de Arte Dramático. Thanks to this he had the opportunity to meet poets and artists who encouraged him to continue living persistently with love for art. Not long after, in 1953, he held his first solo exhibition at the National Museum.
In 1956 he obtained a scholarship from Canadian industrialist Hugh Slight, to study in New York, a place, like all those he visited, from which he took a part to capture in his paintings.
Today, at 92 years of age, he is one of the most important and beloved painters in the country. The poetry and theatricality of his works is difficult to find in other authors. In 2019 he was decorated by former President Iván Duque with the Order of Boyacá.
At 93 years old, David Manzur continues to delight us with his painting as if it were the first day, but this year marks 70 years since the beginning
Beyond an exhibition that wants to focus on how exquisite it is to appreciate a work of the master for its visual content, the exhibition
When planning an exhibition or art show, it is important to start by being clear about what you want to achieve, what your intention is and what role