Graciela Yraizoz’s life ended at the early age of 25, leaving behind four children and a husband who was willing to fulfill his late wife’s wish. Despite the difficulties, Pedro Ureta set out to plant 7,000 trees on an area of 1,200 meters long by 400 meters wide, in order to form a guitar. The work, which began in the 1970s, still exists today under the name of “Estancia La Guitarra” , which is located 20 km from General Levalle, in the province of Córdoba.
One of the most curious facts about its author, Pedro Ureta, is that he only knew about his work through photos that his friends showed him, since he never dared to fly over the area . Today, the design of the guitar can be appreciated from the Google Maps application, just by searching for the name of the estancia. Discovering this structure, created from trees, always awakens the curiosity of new audiences who are captivated by the story behind so much effort.
A guitar that is part of a promise
At the end of the 1970s, Pedro, who was then around 35 years old, began planting trees with his family. This task was difficult for various reasons: the area in the south of Córdoba where the work was to be carried out was a semi-arid plain with strong winds and droughts. However, Ureta sought an alternative so that the trees could grow overcoming adversities, planting trees 15 to 25 cm high for rapid and strong growth, while fighting off rodents.
The selection work included different species of trees according to the intention that was wanted to give to each part of the guitar. On the one hand, dark green Californian cypresses were used for the contours, on the other hand, medicinal eucalyptus trees were used to recreate the six strings of the guitar, both the bridge and the star of the soundhole were made with cypresses . After the rains, the visual contrast of each of the parts was enhanced.
A loss that inspired art
Pedro and Graciela met when he was returning to the country. At that time, Pedro was about 28 years old, while she was just 17. Despite their differences, they decided to unite their lives and start a story together. While she was pregnant with what would have been her fifth child, Graciela, just 25 years old, fainted and suffered a brain aneurysm, which would soon cost her her life. Over time and the difficult task of raising four children, Pedro leaned towards Buddhism, where he found the inspiration to express this display of love.
“The idea came to us when we were in the province of Buenos Aires. She had learned to draw to do this. I remember that at one point I saw the drawing of the guitar, I grabbed it by the end and I realized that on the strings there was a perfect boulevard. After she died, I thought: in her memory I am going to do it ,” Pedro commented in an interview.
Pedro Ureta passed away in 2019, at the age of 79, leaving behind an artistic legacy that was recognized multiple times not only nationally but also received international recognition. Today the ranch is looked after by his children and grandchildren , who grew up and became professionals, but did not abandon the hard work that their father had begun in the late 70s to fulfill the wish of his wife, who had passed away.
