Latin America: Interior Decorator

Muralist Santiago Martínez Delgado has an artist's feeling for form and color, an expert's taste for whiskey. Last week, the two concerns were closely connected. In a salón of the National Capitol in Bogotá, Martínez was busily slapping strong blues and rich reds on a 30-ft. expanse of wall (see cut). His mural will depict the inauguration of Liberators Simón Bolívar and Francisco de Paula Santander at Rosário de Cúcuta in 1821. If he finished on time there would be a bonus: two jugs of whiskey.

The whiskey was a bet between Martínez and mustachioed Engineer Hernando González Varona, who will use almost any means to get the Capitol ready for the Inter-American Conference in March. At week's end, with a few minor figures still to paint, Martínez knew he would not make the deadline. Thereupon, Engineer González extended it to Christmas Eve. "I want to lose," he said. "Those two jugs are just a starter for the celebration."