The Escuelas Nacionales de Arte (National Art Schools) were designed in 1961, and construction began later that year. The Schools were designed by the Cuban Ricardo Porro, and the Italians Roberto Gottardi and Vittorio Garatti. After the Cuban missle crisis of October, 1962, workers began to be diverted away to other projects. There was the expectation that work would eventually resume, but it never did. Various schools were in different stages of completion when the work stopped — Porro's schools of Modern Dance and Plastic Arts were virtually completed; only one of the three buildings comprising Gottardi's School of Dramatic Arts was built; Garatti's School of Music got a late start and the concert hall and opera remained unbuilt. Garatti's School of Ballet was about 90% complete when work was terminated.
Once objects of pride, the schools were allowed to fall into various states of decay. Porro's schools of Modern Dance and Plastic Arts are utilized today but haphazardly maintained. Gottardi's partially constructed School of Dramatic Arts is occupied but underutilized and poorly maintained. The performance halls of Garatti's School of Music were left unbuilt, and today only a third of the constructed school is used. The remainder is abandonded and left to ruin. Most incom- prehensible is the total abandonement of Garatti's School of ballet. Today it is unused, badly decayed,and engulfed in the tropical jungle. We were not able to view oe photograph it on our visit.

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