Ricardo Jiménez- by Daniela Abarca
Don Ricardo Jiménez, a resident of Zapote, loved to build wooden toy cars. Hammers, nails and the remains of the trees were his toys.
At the age of 25, about to get married, he realized drawing was his passion. That is how he arrived to the House of the Artist, but he did not dare to take the step to become a national artist.
He then formed a family, with whom he shared his passion for crafts and arts. However, a few years ago he experienced what he describes as the most painful situation for any parent: the death of his child.
When his daughter died in the early 2000s, he decided to create scale models and miniatures of the Costa Rican churches. Jiménez has already built five miniature churches and says this is his therapy, because he gets to talk to people and he finds comfort in art.
His work is so recognized that the organization of the Guinness Awards asked for documents so he could break the record as the artist who builds the biggest models in the world.
Now, his greatest wish is to launch his most ambitious project: the model of the Basilica de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles, which he has been working on for two years.
These days Don Ricardo will present his model of the Vásquez de Coronado Church in Plaza Cronos, a mall that now has a space dedicated to art, located in Tres Ríos.