Santiago Martínez Delgado

Santiago Martinez Delgado (1906 – 1954) Artist, Writer, disciple of Frank Lloyd Wright

1906 – Born in Bogotá, Colombia in the home of Luis Martinez Silva and Mercedes Mallarino de Delgado. He started his education under the tutoring of don Martín Restrepo Mejía and his high school at San Bartolomé. He also joined courses at the fine arts school under the tutoring of the Master Roberto Pizano.

1925 – to health issues he traveled to Cartagena, there he directed and illustrated some pages at the newspaper "La Patria". He used a fabricated name of "Sanmardel".

1926 – Travel to Chicago where he studied and worked for over five years at the Fine Arts Institute of Chicago under the tutoring of Ruth Van Syncle Ford and Hugh M. Neuman.

1928 – He started a friendship and professional relation with Frank Lloyd Wright, who commissioned Martinez to do some tainted Glass work, Wood carvings and some paintings. Wright found the Masters lines to be elegant and his attitude gracious; Martinez spend time over the years at Taliesin where along with other of Wrght’s protégées they discussed about art, architecture and other cultural issues. Among his friend from Taliesin is Charles Morgan who visited him latter in life in Bogotá.

1929 – He won the very competitive art contest of the Latham Foundation; He won the first prize on the best add by the US Federation of Commercial Artists. He obtains the second please on the art interpretation contest of the “The Chicago Tribune”.

1933 – He won the Logan medal, for his mural of the Colombian evolution at the Chicago International World Fair and exposition.

1934 – He returns to Colombia with an innovative collection at the an vanguard of the country.

1935 – He made the linen of the Theater Municipal of Bogotá (missing), titled "the triumph of comedy over tragedy".

1936 – He founded the course of arte and decoration at the Universidad Javeriana femenina.

1937 - 1940. He made various drawings for the Magazine PAN, directed by the Colombian intellectual Uribe White. He also directed the magazine "Vida", he illustrated countless front pages living an idea of his line and incredible talent. This magazine was a monthly magazine of the Colombian National Insurance Company.

1938 – Martinez who was an avid historian and a protector of the Colombian artistic heritage; Found and old painting broken in two and left to collapse, but he recognized at the spot that it may be by Raphael de Urbino; after a hated debate and much research and debate called (THE DILEMA OF THE MADONNA OF BOGOTA) Martinez Delgado manages to prove by the way of provenance of the piece, X rays and detail forensic work that is indeed an original painting by Raphael; shortly he takes the piece to New York where experts form the Metropolitan, the Chicago Art Institute and lourve among Vich were: Daniel Catton, Rich A. Sweet, Ruber H. Clark, Leo A. Marzolo, Lionello Venturiy Wilheim Valentiner. Confirm that is indeed and original Rápale and is included in the artist catalog as the Madonna of Bogotá. The news of the find, when around the World.

1940 – Participated in the first Salón de Artistas Colombianos where he won the first price with the oil on canvas "El que volvió".

1941 – Participated in the second Salón de Artistas Colombianos and won the first price again with his oil on canvas of his Mother and wife. (This piece is in the Colombian National Museum)

1943 – He made the mural of the school Presentación of Chapinero, he made extensive research for this piece. Master Ramos helped him living him some indications.

1945 - 1946. Collaborated with América Magazine, with drawings to illustrated the front pages.

1945 - 1946. he did, by commission of the then Colombian President, Honorable Laureano Gomez, the mural of the Elliptic chamber National Congress Building. For that Mr. Martinez became the premier historian on Bolivar and his army. He finished in time for the Inter American conference where General Marshal of the US called the piece a wonder of contemporary art. Master Martinez was given the Cruz de Boyacá award.

1945 – Illustrated the biography about Sucre realized by Carlos Arturo Caparroso. (Editorial Horizontes,Bogotá). That year he was designated as Member of the Historic Academy of Bogotá.

1946 – Publish in the magazine América (# 24, December), an article about the life of Christ and the costumes of Palestine, where he explain his research for the 12 stations he made for the Cucuta Cathedral, of heroic proportions.

1946 – Participated at the VII Salón Anual de Artistas Colombianos with the oil on canvas "Alzamiento de Cristo".

1948 – Founded his own commercial art office. In there he made various traded like radio producer. He wrote and directed the dramatization of scripts. He presented the Novel “soap opera” Virrey Solis, that broke all the ratings for the year also made plays like "Estampas Místicas de la tierra del Señor"; "Juan Manuel el Gavilán" (inedited) and many more.

1953 – Started to Saint an oil on canvas of 8 x 4 meters for the Hall of the national City Bank of Bogotá, He died before finish it. But it was set on the Bank as is and it remained the largest oil on canvas in Colombia, Nelson Rockefeller and his brothers ask to be kept there.

1954 - January 12. Died in the hacienda "El Molino", victim of a Herat attack.

1954 - August 3. The National Museum, with the collaboration of the Education Ministry, organized an exposition in his honor.