Enrique Caravia y Montenegro was not only a painter, but also an engraver and mosaicist. A prolific artist, he frequently traveled to other latitudes and developed a broad aesthetic worldview that assimilated diverse movements and included a variety of media. He was born in Havana on March 13, 1905, and died in this city on December 24, 1992, after a long illness.

He completed his early studies at the Villate School in Havana; later, he even taught at the Félix Varela School and finally enrolled at the distinguished Academy of San Alejandro. In 1923, he exhibited his works at the Lyceum of Havana. The following year, he traveled to the United States, where he studied Commercial Drawing, a discipline that did not have a long tradition at the time but was promising due to the growing avalanche of advertising that would characterize the 20th century, especially in that country.

Shortly after his return to Cuba in 1926, he began working as a draftsman for the Diario de la Marina newspaper. However, he did not remain a member of its team for long, as two years later he won a scholarship to study in Europe for five years. He was only 23 years old at the time, but he was already amply demonstrating his artistic talent and the sustained effort he was capable of in carrying out his work.

Once in Europe, he began studying coloring, engraving, and chalcography at the San Fernando Academy in Madrid. He later traveled to Italy and enrolled in courses in mural decoration and fresco painting at the School of Fine Arts, as well as in engraving at the School of Printmaking in Rome. He later returned to the Americas, but before returning to Cuba, he continued his studies in engraving, particularly in the techniques of woodcuts, etchings, and lithography, at the School of Free Arts in Mexico.

In Cuba, in 1936, he became a Professor of Statuary Drawing at the Elementary School of Plastic Arts attached to San Alejandro, and from 1947 he taught at the Higher School. He exhibited his work in cities such as Madrid, Vienna, Munich, Czechoslovakia, the United States, and Mexico, in addition to participating in several international events. He also won prizes in Carnival Poster competitions (1937, 1938, and 1945) and First Prize for decorating the Municipal Palace, based on the theme of the Discovery of America.

His most important works include the mosaic murals for the José Martí Monument and the one titled “The History of Culture,” located in the lobby of the Museum of Fine Arts. His best-known works include “Tránsito,” “Lagarterana bordando,” “Indio mexicano,” “El pintor Marín,” “Carnaval,” “La gitana,” “Castle of San Angello” (engraving), “Mercado de Oaxaca” (lithograph), and “Fuente Fabrecino” (etching)