Spanish born botanist and mathematician, Mutis is known not for his scientific works but for the scientific awakening of present day Colombia, and dedicating his life to the education its people. Born in Cádiz, Mutis studied medicine, graduating in this field from Seville in 1755. He gained a doctorate in medicine in 1757 and began teaching as a professor of anatomy in Madrid. Meanwhile he continued studying botany in Migas Calientes, now the Real Jardín Botánico in Madrid. He took the opportunity to travel to the Americas, becoming private physician to the Viceroy Pedro Messia de la Cerda in Santa Fe de Bogotá in 1760. While there he was distressed by the lack of intellectual activity and the ignorance of the monks that taught at the university. He took it upon himself to educate the students in sciences previously unheard of in the region. The Viceroy allowed him to teach mathematics in the college "del Rosario" which quickly became the favourite subject of the students. He lost favour, however, with the other teachers and with the church in general, especially as he fought to teach Copernican theory. Luckily he was shielded from the inquisition due to the Viceroy's patronage and was appointed as Professor Chair of philosophy, maths and natural history. Throughout this time Mutis was in constant contact with Carl Linnaeus, whose son later named the orchid genus Mutisia L.f. after him in 1781.

In 1763 he formed a proposal to the King to fund an expedition to asses the natural wealth of the Viceroyalty. While awaiting the Kings acceptance he turned his attention to a search for silver in the region; the only success of this being the discovery of a wealth of information about the natural history (especially the botany and geology) of New Granada. In 1772 he was ordained and so impressed the visiting Archbishop that in 1778 he was given a grant to continue his botanical studies. This no doubt facilitated the eventual funding of the Botanical Expedition of Nueva Granada in 1783. The Botanical Expedition was the first to be requested of the Monarchy rather than by royal initiative and would explore 8,000 square kilometres of the region. He was leader of the Expedition for 25 years, initially collecting in the region of present day Colombia using meticulous methodology. However declining health meant that Mutis returned to Bogota and his colleague Don Francisco Zea continued in the field, sending samples back for Mutis to classify. While in Bogota he became particularly interested in Chinchona, the bark from which quinine is found, and described several species, their geographical distribution and medicinal properties. Mutis's collection included 24,000 dried plants and over 4,000 commissioned drawings, all with detailed descriptions. Alexander von Humboldt spent time with Mutis in 1801, and praised the collections of the Botanical Expedition as second only to Joseph Banks in London.

Mutis left many of his studies incomplete, and published scarcely, however his passion for promoting the study of the sciences and to educate Nueva Granada meant he left his mark on the history of Latin America. The influx of political knowledge that he brought to the region culminated, after his death in 1808, in the 1810 revolution in Bogota. Many members of the Botanical Expedition formed the new Supreme Junta and the event sparked successive revolutions in the region. His position of authority with the viceroys of the region was always used to promote fair treatment and education of the natives of Nueva Granada and for that he was loved and respected by his fellow countrymen. The Jose Celestino Mutis botanic garden in Bogota remains as a tribute to his promotion of science in the capital and surrounding area.