Art of Francisco Narváez in the University City of Caracas

Eleven of the works are considered part of the campus living museum; the other, a wooden bust called Torso, was created in 1956 and is currently displayed in the dean of the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning (FAU)'s office.

[a] Narváez works in various materials, with an artistic style based in his own Venezuelan identity as well as influenced by European modes and classical sculptures from antiquity, from his background in Paris.

The artist had worked with campus architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva on several occasions before, creating public art that reflected contemporary social issues.

As part of a World Heritage Site, several conservation efforts have taken place, with a group dedicated to preserving Narváez' campus artwork; the latest plans for restoration, in 1999 and 2000, were not undertaken due to a lack of funds.

[2] Francisco Narváez had chosen to study at the Académie Julian in Paris in the 1920s and '30s, rather than continuing to study in Caracas or attend the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts, because of his aversion to following trends: his style was largely connected to his national identity, but he did not follow the predominant Latin American schools of the time.

In 1943, Narváez was called on again, this time to create large sculptural pieces for the main square of El Silencio, the urban area Villanueva was reinvigorating.

[5] In 1952 Narváez spent much time in Italy and suffered a heart attack; he returned to Venezuela in 1953 and continued to work on the campus.

[8] His monumental works produced for Villanueva's public spaces are said to embody "the majestic spirit and poses of classical art, but proudly displaying the features and fibrous bodies of a mixed race", a theme also prevalent in social processes during the aftermath of Juan Vicente Gómez' dictatorship being toppled in 1935.

While continuing to depict the human form, it became more abstract (with works like La Cultura) compared to his earlier adherence to anatomical accuracy.

[11] The institutes of Experimental Medicine and Anatomy form part of the medical complex, and are in the style of Villanueva's initial plan for the campus to be perfectly symmetrical (a design later abandoned).

The group received funds from PDVSA and brought in Giusseppina Fazio to clean away algae and lichen and to reinforce the stucco connecting different parts of the sculpture.

[17] The design of the athlete figure references both the "majesty of the Egyptian pharaohs" and the careful eye to human anatomy of the Greek sculptors.

[2] Since then, the condition of the statue has been degrading; the Venezuelan government have made no efforts to preserve it, despite being part of a World Heritage Site.

Completed in 1951, the design is in direct reference to the building it inhabits, with two "eye-catching" figures: the bare-chested woman with arms extended, and the skinless man reclining across the piece from right to left.

All-male physicians in gowns and caps variously examine the two main figures, read books, and work with microscopes.

[1] Year: 1950 Cristo[9] is a painted fresco depicting Jesus on the cross, surrounded by female figures, on the wall behind the altar in the Chapel of the University Hospital.

[23] Year: 1953 A bronze patina sculpture cast in 1950, the José Gregorio Hernández figure is at the entrance to the Institute of Experimental Medicine.

From the Military Board of the government of the United States of Venezuela, to the illustrious wise man from Trujillo, Doctor José Gregorio Hernández.

[27][28] In 1949, the Venezuelan Catholic Church began the process of determining whether or not Hernández was eligible for sainthood; in 1985 the Vatican granted him the title of Venerable,[29] and he was beatified in 2021.

[26] Year: 1954 La cultura (identified as "Sculpture" in Valerie Fraser's book), was made later in his creative cycle and is more figurative than his earlier works, reflecting the greater influence that European artists had on his style starting with this piece.

[2] Year: 1956 A separate work by Narváez, Torso was originally featured as part of an exhibition at the university in the A. Planchart and Cia.

The wooden sculpture depicting a female torso later became part of the artwork collection of the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning (FAU).