Bonifacio was an unusual and somewhat eccentric painter, who went from the world of bullfighting — he was an apprentice matador — to that of visual arts, devoting himself fully to painting from 1958 onwards, when he created a personal style to which he always remained faithful.

Although as an artist he never liked labels, his work has been placed in the category of

 Abstract Expressionism 

This contemporary painting movement emerged within the field of abstraction in the 1940s in the United States, from where it spread worldwide. Rooted in similar premises and postulates as Surrealism, the Abstract Expressionist artists regarded the act of painting as a spontaneous and unconscious activity, a dynamic bodily action divested of any kind of prior planning. The works belonging to this movement are defined by the use of pure, vibrant primary colours that convey a profound sense of freedom. The movement’s main pioneers were, among others, Arshile Gorky (1904-1948) and Hans Hoffman (1880-1966). Leading Spanish exponents of the movement are Esteban Vicente (1903-2001) and José Guerrero (1914-1991), who lived for some time in New York City, where they were in first-hand contact with the many artistic innovations taking place there around that time.

, notably with respect to his dreamlike references. His work characteristically cultivates dynamic forms, which he endows with a poetic language closely related to that of the . One also detects echoes of artists such as Willem de Kooning (1904–1997) and Roberto Matta (1911–2002) in the freshness of his colours and the lively tones he uses.

In this work, very similar to Pájaro, also in the BBVA Collection, the artist injects strength into the composition using a noticeably free-flowing and energetic brushstroke, transforming the bird in the still life to the point of making it barely recognisable. Bonifacio’s style is half way between Surrealism and Expressionism.

Unlike Triángulo azul, also in the BBVA Collection, here Bonifacio uses a colder palette, conveying a certain sense of solitude and melancholy to the beholder. In this case the bird is rendered in a more homogenous manner that contrasts with the ethereal and isolated forms of the above-mentioned work.