Francisco Zúñiga, famous for his depiction of the female form, was born in Costa Rica in 1912. There he studied drawing at the School of Fine Arts and worked in his father's studio, a workshop for religious sculpture. In 1936, the artist left San José for Mexico City. It was here in Mexico that Zúñiga would begin his career as a sculptor and draftsman. Zúñiga's experiments with volume, line and space are demonstrated throughout his works.
Zúñiga worked with the painter Manuel Rodríguez Lozano and soon became one of the founders of La Esmeralda, the National School of Painting and Sculpture. Additionally, he was commissioned for numerous public monuments and studio projects including a number of massive female figures sculpted in onyx and bronze. At the time of his death in 1998, Zúñiga's work was world renowned for its sensitivity in depicting universal archetypes of women.
Zúñiga's work can also be seen as an example of regional representation as he often depicts figures of indigenous women. Yet in focusing on posture, gesture and composition, Zúñiga utilizes classical sculptural language.
In Mujer Desnuda, the posture and gesture of the feminine figure suggest this relationship of community and union between women. Full-hipped, with legs and feet firmly planted on the earth, the figure peers out from beneath the shawl that covers her. While the stance of the model and the composition undoubtedly refer to the classical Western tradition, the interplay of light and shadow create volume that emphasizes maturity and maternal power via her rounded belly and breasts. The figure transcends the reductive barriers of nationalistic representation, moving instead toward a universal interpretation of woman.