Fernando Botero (Colombian b. 1932)

In the drawings of any artist we are able to observe the direct confrontation with the blankness of the paper--with nothingness that exists before the creative process gets underway....The majority of Botero's drawings, however, are conceived as independent works of art. Rarely, if ever, do they directly repeat a composition the artist has executed in oils. It is equally rare for a drawing to be reinstated in a painting. Botero is able to evoke a sensuous velvety texture in these works that lends them a special appeal.

E. J. Sullivan, Botero: Drawings and Watercolors, Rizzoli, New York, 1993, x.