Francisco Zúñiga

José Jesús Francisco Zúñiga Chavarría (December 27, 1912 – August 9, 1998) was a Costa Rican-born Mexican artist, known both for his painting and his sculpture. Journalist Fernando González Gortázar lists Zúñiga as one of the 100 most notable Mexicans of the 20th century, while the Encyclopædia Britannica calls him "perhaps the best sculptor" of the Mexican political modern style.

Zúñiga created over thirty five public sculptures, such as the monument to poet Ramón López Velarde in the city of Zacatecas and others dedicated to Mexican heroes. In the 1940s he created two sculpture for Chapultepec Park, Muchachas corriendo and Física nuclear. In 1984 he created a group of sculptures called Tres generaciones for the city of Sendai, Japan. During his lifetime, these were considered his most important works. Since then, they have become secondary to his other sculpting.

He stated that he preferred figurative art because he found the human figure to be “the most important aspect of the world around (him)”. He was also strongly influenced by pre Hispanic art, spending significant time sketching pieces in museums, along with images of women in traditional markets, feeling that they represented maternity and familial responsibility.