The exhibition, which can be visited until June 7, is distributed across three emblematic spaces in Montilla: San Juan de Dios, the Pretorio de Santa Clara, and the Casa del Inca. This initiative seeks to recognize the career of an artist who, over the years, has developed his own creative universe away from the media spotlight.
The idea for this retrospective emerged over a year ago, when the Montilla City Council's Department of Culture, after hearing the proposal from Ángel Márquez and Manolo Bellido, decided to commit to giving visibility to Rodríguez Portero's work. The inauguration was attended by local authorities and a large group of family and friends.
“"The satisfaction, typical of an inauguration, was more than palpable last night in San Juan de Dios, where before family and friends, the mayor managed to extract from Rodríguez Portero the commitment to an artistic work for the Montilla Wine Museum that the City Council is building in El Parador."
The exhibition features some thirty sculptures in the Pretorio de Santa Clara, an extensive collection of drawings in the Casa del Inca, and nearly forty paintings in the San Juan de Dios hall. Visiting hours are Fridays and Saturdays from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 19:00 to 22:00, and Sundays and holidays from 10:00 to 12:00.
Born in Montilla in 1943, Rafael Rodríguez Portero is the grandson of the renowned foreman Juan Rodríguez, who in the 1930s revolutionized the world of local wines. His artistic training began at the Salesian College and continued at the Círculo de Bellas Artes de Madrid and the Escuela de Bellas Artes de Santa Isabel de Hungría de Sevilla. In addition to his prolific artistic career, he worked as a teacher, retiring as a professor from the Escuela de Mateo Inurria de Córdoba.
Rodríguez Portero's work spans various disciplines, from clay modeling to stone carving, wood, or bronze casting, also including paintings, ceramics, murals, stained glass, and drawings. Among his most notable creations is the Monument to San Francisco Solano, inaugurated in 2011, which has become a symbol of local identity.
