Francisco Javier Matís

Francisco Javier Matís (1763 Guaduas – 5 November 1851 Bogotá) a.k.a. Francisco Javier Matiz, was a Neogranadine painter and botanical illustrator noted for his work during the Royal Botanical Expedition to New Granada (1783–1814).

Biography

He was the third child of Bartolomé Matís and Maria Luisa Mahecha. The exact date of his birth is unknown. In 1781, aged 18, the young Matís traveled to Santa Fe de Bogotá and worked as a painter for the Urquinaona family, who had strong ties to the Expedition. He worked for the Expedition for twenty-seven years, from December 1783 until 1812 when it was officially terminated. He started as an apprentice under the painter Pablo Antonio García del Campo, later becoming an important botanical illustrator and an insightful anatomist, responsible for dissecting flowers and illustrating them with great skill.

The Royal Botanical Expedition to the New Kingdom of Granada, promoted and directed by José Celestino Mutis, was one of the grandest expeditions organized during the reign of Charles III of Spain. It took place during the same period as the expedition to Peru and northern Chile led by Hipólito Ruiz and José Pavón, with that of New Spain which was under the direction of Martín Sessé and José Moziño and with that of Baltasar Manuel Boldo which centered on the Huina River basin in eastern Cuba. Of these expeditions, the one in New Granada lasted longest, and had the most expedition members, entailing enormous running expenses.