Alejandro Colina

Who was Alejandro Colina?

Alejandro Colina was a Venezuelan sculptor.

Alejandro Colina, a Venezuelan sculptor, was born in Caracas on February 8, 1901. Colina is one of the greatest exponents of Venezuelan monumental sculpture and framed much of his work within the cultural heritage of indigenous communities, with their sculptures celebrating the myths, legends, gods and chieftains of the tribes in Venezuela. He died in 1976 at the age of 75 years. His most famous works are the statue of Maria Lionza, and the whole of the Ciudad Universitaria in Caracas.

Alejandro Colina's parents were Alejandro Torcuato Colina, the illegitimate son of Estado Falcón; and Fermina Viera, a Spanish lady originally from Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Colina began his artistic development at the Academy of Fine Arts in Caracas at 13 years old. For seventeen years he worked as a mechanic for merchant ships, and as such, traveled for more than a decade. In 1919, he returned to Caracas and began to study at the School of Arts and Crafts in Caracas, where his works were exhibited and he became the Deputy Director of the institute.