José Buscaglia Guillermety (born 1938) is an

educator A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

and

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

. He is a Fellow of the National Sculptor Society and a founding member of the Academy of Arts and Sciences of Puerto Rico.

Background

Buscaglia was born in

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

. His father Rafael Buscaglia was a lawyer, banker and an influential political figure within the ranks of The

Popular Democratic Party of Puerto Rico The Popular Democratic Party (, PPD) is a political party in Puerto Rico that advocates to continue as a Commonwealth of the United States with self-governance. The party was founded in 1938 by dissidents from the Liberal Party of Puerto Rico, Pu ...

. Besides being one of the co-founders of the party and the founder of the Banco Gubernamental of Fomento, he also held the cabinet position of Treasurer. Buscaglia's mother, Josefina Guillermety, was a student of noted

opera Opera is a form of History of theatre#European theatre, Western theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically ...

singer

Antonio Paoli Antonio Paoli (14 April 1871 – 24 August 1946) was a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican tenor. At the height of his fame, he was known as "The King of Tenors and The Tenor of Kings." He is considered to be the first Puerto Rican to reach internat ...

. The family lived in the Santurce neighborhood of San Juan and also had a farm in Comerío, a town located in the central mountains of the island. There he came into constant contact with nature and peasant culture. On one occasion when he was six years old, his father went on a trip to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and brought back a box of modeling clay as a gift for his young son. Young José became fascinated with the gift and started to model human figures with it. His father recognized that his young son had a talent for sculpting and in 1946 enrolled him in an arts school where he was to take lessons from Ismael D'Alzina. After attending his regular school, he would go to the arts school and take six hours of sculpting classes per day.

Education

Buscaglia received his primary and secondary education at the Sacred Heart Academy of Santurce graduating in 1956. He then attended

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

where he was the first person to receive a Bachelors in Fine Arts (1960). He spent his junior year abroad in

Barcelona, Spain Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a pop ...

where he became a disciple of Catalan sculptor Enrique Monjo. After graduating from Harvard he returned to Spain to complete his apprenticeship with Monjo.

Professional career

Buscaglia returned to Puerto Rico in 1962 and was commissioned by the

Government of Puerto Rico The government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, organized under the Constitution of Puerto Rico since 1952, is a republican democracy modeled after the Federal Government of the United States. Under a system of separation of powers, the ...

to erect a monument in the likeness of the late governor

Jesus T. Piñero Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the central figure of Christianity, the world's largest religi ...

. He was hired by the

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Universidad de Puerto Rico;'' often shortened to UPR) is the main List of state and territorial universities in the United States, public university system in the Commonwealth (U.S. i ...

and held the position of Director of Fine Arts at various periods between 1962 and 1979. In 1979 he was instrumental in the development and design of an experimental program, sponsored by the Venezuelan Government and Harvard University, that became known a
''Project Intelligence''

Main Sculptural Works

Buscaglia has created over forty monuments which can be found in Puerto Rico, the

U.S. Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located ...

and the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. His works have been exhibited at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

Rockefeller Center Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commerce, commercial buildings covering between 48th Street (Manhattan), 48th Street and 51st Street (Manhattan), 51st Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. The 14 original Art De ...

, the U.S. Department of Education in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Hostos Community College Eugenio María de Hostos Community College of The City University of New York is a public community college in the South Bronx, New York City. It is part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system and was created by an act of the Board ...

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

and

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

. His principal works include: * Jesus T. Piñero (1962) *

Robert Frost Robert Lee Frost (March26, 1874January29, 1963) was an American poet. Known for his realistic depictions of rural life and his command of American Colloquialism, colloquial speech, Frost frequently wrote about settings from rural life in New E ...

(1963) *

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the first Roman Catholic and youngest person elected p ...

(1969) * Death Mask of

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), known in English as Pablo Casals,Roberto Cofresí Roberto Cofresí y Ramírez de Arellano (June 17, 1791 – March 29, 1825), better known as El Pirata Cofresí, was a Puerto Rican pirate. He was born into a noble family, but the political and economic difficulties faced by the island as a colo ...

(1989) *

Roberto Clemente Roberto Enrique Clemente Walker (; August 18, 1934 – December 31, 1972) was a Puerto Rican professional baseball player who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates, primarily as a right fielder. On December ...

(1996) *

Eugenio María de Hostos Eugenio María de Hostos y de Bonilla (January 11, 1839 – August 11, 1903), known as ("The Great Citizen of the Americas"), was a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican educator, philosopher, intellectual, lawyer, sociologist, novelist, and Puerto Rican ...

(1998) * Puerto Rican Family Monument (2009) * Altar de la Patria (dedicated in 2012)

Awards

On July 31, 2004, In

Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...

, the Puerto Rican Day Parade and Festival Organization presented José Buscaglia Guillermety with the "Artistic Excellence Award".

Relations

Buscaglia is married to Inés Salgado Nieves (San Juan, 1940) and has five children: José, Rafael (1965-2017), Gian Carlo, Gina María, and Piero. José Francisco Buscaglia is a writer, and a full professor in th
Department of Cultures, Societies and Global Studies
at Notrtheastern University in Bosto
Gian Carlo Buscaglia
is a prominent Latin musician, composer, singer and guitarist in the Boston metropolitan area.

References

External links

The Sculptural World of José BuscagliaJosé Buscaglia, 1967José Buscaglia: Arts Meets Empire
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buscaglia Guillermety, Jose 1938 births Living people Puerto Rican educators 20th-century Puerto Rican sculptors Harvard University alumni University at Buffalo alumni Artists from San Juan, Puerto Rico