Marina Núñez del Prado

Marina Núñez del Prado was born on October 17, 1908, in La Paz. Graduating from the National Academy of Fine Arts in La Paz, she pioneered direct carving sculpture in South America, drawing deep aesthetic inspiration from the pre-Columbian megalithic monuments of Tiwanaku and the rolling horizons of the Altiplano.

Her signature sculptures in black granite, white onyx, and basalt—depicting indigenous women, condors, and maternal figures—were exhibited at major museums worldwide, including MoMA in New York and the Venice Biennale. In 1972, she established the Casa Museo Marina Núñez del Prado in La Paz and later donated her family house and sculpture garden in Lima as a cultural heritage sanctuary.