There's almost no sport in making fun of San Antonio's "community-wide celebration" of Botero: Beloved Artist of the Americas, but we'll take a cheap shot anyway: it's organized by Art Services International, a group that puts together generally solid exhibits (and has provided shows to the Frick and the Smithsonian, as well as — closer to home — the Kimbell, McNay, MFAH, Meadows, SAMA, Crow Collection, and the Tyler Museum). But Botero stinks, period, and this show is a cheesy, PC, spoonfeeding boondoggle that no community should touch. Even Don Bacigalupi of the
Toledo Museum of Art (and one-time director of Blaffer Gallery at UH) is giving a lecture on how "Botero's stylizations borrow from and resonate with other artists'
uniquely exaggerated styles, from Old Masters to cutting-edge
contemporary artists." Yuck.
Treat your audience like morons and they will respond accordingly
