Por Redaccion 
Francisco Vázquez García, one of the most veteran members of the Gran Duque de Alba Institution (IGDA), has passed away in Madrid at the age of 83.
The president of the Diputación de Ávila and the General Council of the Gran Duque de Alba Institution, Carlos García, has expressed his condolences to the family and friends of Francisco Vázquez García, a member of the Art Section of the IGDA, as reported by the Diputación in a statement picked up by Europa Press.
Born in Ávila, Vázquez García stood out for his «brilliant academic curriculum,» also a result of his long career, which made him one of the most veteran members of the Institution.
Graduated in Philosophy and Literature – History Section – from the universities of Valladolid and Complutense of Madrid, he obtained his doctorate cum laude in Geography and History with the thesis ‘The Baroque altarpieces of the northern area of the Diocese of Ávila’; a fact that «clearly showed his early interest in the region of Ávila,» added the president.
Vázquez won the Gredos Prize for Historical Research in 1985 for a research project on the infante don Luis de Borbón and for years he participated as a coordinator in various teacher training courses, organized by the UNED and the Teacher Training Institute of the Ministry of Education.
Francisco Vázquez worked as a high school professor in the Department of Geography and History at the ‘Lope de Vega’ Institute in Madrid until his retirement and was the author of multiple publications, including one dedicated to the 17th-century sculptor, originally from San Vicente de Arévalo, Francisco Gutiérrez, author of La Cibeles madrileña; or the book dedicated to the study of the main altarpiece of the convent of San José in the capital of Ávila.
The president has highlighted the memory of a «prolific and fruitful life,» which will now accompany his legacy to all the people of Ávila, «because, from Madrid, Francisco Vázquez always cared for and nurtured his roots» in Ávila, dedicating «his ability and talent on numerous occasions,» something for which, in the words of Carlos García, «we will always be grateful to him.»