This article by Mario Rivero forms part of a book featuring a selection of texts on the outstanding draftsman and printmaker Óscar Jaramillo, and some of his drawings. The text places Jaramillo’s work in the context of the aesthetic concerns of Colombian art of the seventies, when some creators were engaged in what Rivero calls “inquiry into immediate reality.” Rivero considers Jaramillo a contemporary realist whose work revolves around discovery as the basis for “a challenge, an investigation, an exploration in constant search of personalities and sentiments,” as well as “a moral sense” in characters that come from the sordid nightlife of urban slums.

This article differs from other texts written on artist Oscar Jaramillo (b. 1947) as it places his work in the broader context of artists from the seventies who addressed the theme of the city.    

A draftsman and printmaker with no formal training—indeed, he did not finish high school—Jaramillo was immersed in the youthful bohemian scene and made drawings depicting brothels, bars, and cafes. In 1971, he took part in his first group shows; his first solo show was held in 1976. Starting in those years, he made outstanding portraits of marginal urban figures depicted on the street or in rooms of old buildings. Jaramillo developed a drawing technique that made use of black pencil with turpentine on paper; he then ventured into printmaking, a medium that he used to make a large assortment of individual and group portraits with a deep sense of humanity and emotion.  

Pursuant to the publication of his book Poemas urbanos (1963), Mario Rivero (1935–2009) was a pioneer of what was called Colombian “city poetry.” He was the cofounder of the magazine Golpe de dados (1972–2009), which published critical commentaries on artists working in different media. He is the author of Arte y artistas de Colombia (1972) as well as monographs on the artists Botero (1973), Rayo (1975), and Manzur (1983).