{"id":33627,"date":"2026-02-16T09:46:53","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T09:46:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/estades.com\/?page_id=33627"},"modified":"2026-03-10T11:47:35","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T11:47:35","slug":"toreros","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/bernard-buffet\/toreros\/","title":{"rendered":"Bullfighting and Toreros in Bernard Buffet\u2019s Work"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Bullfighting was one of <a href=\"\/en\/bernard-buffet\/presentation-bernard-buffet\/\" class=\"linkss\">Bernard Buffet\u2019s preferred subjects<\/a>. Like Pablo Picasso and Francisco de Goya before him, he found in tauromachy a theme that is dramatic, ritualistic and profoundly aesthetic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>His fascination with bullfighting inspired a significant series of paintings devoted to toreros and arena scenes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/estades.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/BUFFET-Bernard-Torero-en-costume-violet-73-cm-x-51-cm-456x600-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-33702\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/estades.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/BUFFET-Bernard-Torero-69-X-48-CM-600x5671-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-33717\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/estades.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/buffet-1-494x600-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-33697\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why Did Bernard Buffet Turn to Bullfighting?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Bullfighting offered Bernard Buffet a concentration of tension, staging and confrontation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He attended bullfights, notably in Arles and N\u00eemes, and was captivated by the ceremony: the entrance into the arena, the paseo, the torero\u2019s posture and the silent anticipation of the audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>From the Biennale de la Jeune Peinture onward, he presented works depicting the paseo and toreros surrounded by their cuadrillas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In tauromachy, he rediscovered themes that run throughout his oeuvre:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>solitude in the face of destiny<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the imminent presence of death<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>dramatic tension<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the theatrical dimension of gesture<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Portraits of Toreros<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Bernard Buffet created numerous portraits of toreros, many of which now belong to private collections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The toreros are depicted standing, hieratic, dressed in traje de luces. Lines are taut, faces elongated and gazes fixed. The torero becomes an almost sculptural figure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These portraits condense the defining characteristics of his style:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>bold black line<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>rigorous construction<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>asserted verticality<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>psychological intensity<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Annabel Buffet and Tauromachy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Bernard Buffet introduced Annabel Buffet to bullfighting. She herself spoke of her emotional response to this art form, which she described as exceptional.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In 1963, at Ch\u00e2teau l\u2019Arc, Annabel posed in traje de luces for her husband. This staging blurred the boundaries between model, muse and character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Through this series, Bernard Buffet transformed bullfighting into an intimate theatre where love, tension and awareness of danger intersect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bullfighting as a Concentration of Bernard Buffet\u2019s Talent<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The paintings devoted to toreros demonstrate Bernard Buffet\u2019s remarkable visual memory. He could depict a figure after observing it only once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Each torero becomes under his brush a singular figure, both elegant and tragic. The flamboyant costume contrasts with the gravity of the face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Bullfighting thus appears as a metaphor: a ritual combining bravery, staging and confrontation with death. This tragic dimension echoes the other major themes of his work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Bullfighting Within the Broader Oeuvre<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Bernard Buffet did not treat bullfighting as an isolated episode. He painted tauromachy scenes alongside other series, including Provence landscapes and Venetian views.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The theme of toreros forms part of a broader serial approach characteristic of his method: exploring a subject exhaustively through its many variations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"\/shop\/categorie-produit\/toreros\/\" class=\"linkss\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>&gt; View Bernard Buffet lithographs of bullfighting<\/em>&nbsp;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bullfighting was one of Bernard Buffet\u2019s preferred subjects. Like Pablo Picasso and Francisco de Goya before him, he found in tauromachy a theme that is dramatic, ritualistic and profoundly aesthetic. His fascination with bullfighting inspired a significant series of paintings&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":33577,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"bb.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-33627","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/33627","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33627"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/33627\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33961,"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/33627\/revisions\/33961"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/33577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.estades.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33627"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}