Gego - Importance of Education

Importance of Education

Being very well-educated herself, Gego knew the importance of education. Consequently, after moving to Caracas, Venezuela, Gego taught at the school of architecture of the Central University between 1958 and 1967. Additionally, between 1964 and 1977, she taught at the Neumann Institute of Design in Caracas, an institution where many other renowned artists, such as Harry Abend, her fellow European-born artist, also taught. She taught courses like "Bidimensional and Three-Dimensional Form" and "Spatial Solutions" and published two articles between 1971 and 1977.

Gego believed that with her education and experience she would be a great asset to young minds. In 1947, the Venezuelan people finally overthrew the dictatorial government. Gego knew that, after a time of crisis, students are the members of society that are the most influential. Included in her Sabiduras, a folder of her informal writings discovered upon her death, there is a letter addressed to her colleagues explaining the criteria that would be beneficial to the students of Venezuela. In it, she explains that only through experience can artists, and architects in particular, learn their medium. Images and theories about architecture would not further their artistic training. Gego's views were fueled by her belief that students were taught with too much emphasis on rationally and were becoming "ignorant of imagination".