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Lucio Farías
Lucio Sabás Farías Nieto (Spanish: [ˈlusioʊ fɑríæz]; 24 August 1938 – 26 October 2017) was an architect, entrepreneur, designer, educator, and a Grandmaster Martial Artist who was born in Argentina and had a career span of over 60 years. He was most notable for teaching traditional Okinawan and Japanese martial arts in Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Aruba, and the United States of America. Lucio, who held a 10th degree in Karate, 9th degree in Jujutsu, 8th degree in Judo, and 6th degree in Kobudō, taught martial arts to thousands of students in South and North America. He became a Venezuelan citizen and later a US citizen for his extraordinary ability and achievement in his extensive martial arts career, community involvement, and induction into the United States International Martial Arts Hall of Fame.
Lucio was born in Las Cuevas, a village in the province of Mendoza at an altitude of 3,557 meters. He developed a lifelong interest in nature, culture, and personal growth. The challenging conditions of Las Cuevas and the Andean landscape, made a significant impression that inspired him to pursue a career in landscape architecture, personal development, and martial arts.
His martial arts career started in 1958, when he was 20 years old. He trained in Judo with Sensei Omurazaki at the Nihon Jin Kai Association, one of the first martial arts associations in Buenos Aires. He earned his black belt in 1962, after four years of rigorous training. He then, opened his first dōjō in Lanús, Buenos Aires, with the support of Sensei Hitoshi Nishizaka. Lucio taught various Martial Arts disciplines throughout his career, such as Judo (Kōdōkan and Kōdōkan Goshin Jutsu), Karate (Shōrin-ryū, Gōjū-ryū, and Kyokushin), Okinawan Kobudō (Matayoshi Shinpo and Matayoshi Shinko), Jujutsu, Tomari-te, Aikido, and self defense. He taught martial arts students in dōjōs, clubs, colleges, and universities in Argentina, Chile, Venezuela, Aruba, and the United States of America.
In Argentina, Lucio taught martial arts at twelve different dōjōs and had over 1,200 students. Later, he founded an organization that promoted the culture and education of martial arts. He provided knowledge, training, and fair promotions to all martial artists. In the United States, Lucio received recognition and support from Philip S. Porter, the founder of the United States Martial Arts Association (USMA). Porter introduced Lucio to the USMA International Hall of Fame and awarded him various recognitions. Lucio also trained with other martial art masters, such as Hitoshi Nishizaha, Katsuyoshi Takada, Yoriyuki Yamamoto (All Japan Federation), Morio Higaonna (founder of the International Okinawan Goju-ryu Karate-do Federation), and Kobayashi Yoshihito Hiramatsu, among other prominent martial artists.
In 1965, Lucio enrolled at the Universidad de Mendoza, where he pursued his passion for becoming a Landscape Architect. He completed his studies and earned his degree in Architecture on October 22, 1976. Soon after, Lucio established Parkicentro, an innovative Architectural firm that specialized in Landscape Architecture and construction. Lucio had the expertise and skills to work on various types of construction and architecture, but he mainly focused on natural Landscape Architecture. His philosophy was to “do things right” and his vision was to achieve the highest quality possible, while maintaining a “natural-look” in his architectural works. This was his main priority throughout his career. Parkicentro provided landscape architecture for various communities, private clients, students, family, and friends.
Lucio was also an entrepreneur and he pursued to develop ideas, including pioneering hydroponics in the city of Valencia, using sustainable materials, and testing non-mechanical irrigation systems. He was always eager to learn and expand his knowledge on nature and culture. He worked in different positions and created several businesses throughout his career. Lucio started, managed, and completed a wide array of projects within Landscape Architecture. He was responsible for hiring and leading teams, managing budgets, and supervising the execution of the designs. His portfolio included summer houses, martial arts dojos, several significant main-exhibition stands for various Asian Embassies at the Feria Internacional de Venezuela (International Fair Trade of Venezuela), gardens and waterfalls for malls and private customers, pools, barbecues, gazebos, pergolas, irrigation systems, and more. He delivered high-quality landscape solutions for various clients and scales.
Lucio was an outstanding instructor in various disciplines throughout his career. He taught a wide range of topics in architecture and martial arts at prestigious institutions such as universities, colleges, schools, dojos, and clubs. He also created martial arts programs for publication and television.
During his life span of almost eight decades, Lucio lived a great life for the most part, traveled to many countries and learned several languages. He was an avid reader, constantly learning new things and loved to cook, implementing new styles and ideas. He loved sharing his knowledge of scientific names of many plants, trees, and minerals, which he sketched during his architectural studies at the University of Mendoza. His love for nature and his family was present in every conversation. His legacy, style, and vision is present in the many gardens, waterfalls, ponds and landscapes that he created. He planted an innumerable amount of trees and flowers throughout South America and North America, while caring for his family and demonstrating ethical care for the environment.
Name and Last Name Origins
Lucio was named after Don Lucio Nieto Funes (23 May 1880 - 21 October 1958), his paternal Argentinian-grandfather. Lucio was a common family name given to the descendants of Don Lucio Nieto Funes. The middle name Sabás, honored his father Zabás Farías (5 December 1907 - 24 May 1981).
Lucio inherited the surname Farías from Paulino Farías, his oldest known direct ancestor (five generations back) of Chilean origin from the early 1800s. Although his parental grandfather Don Pablo Marcial Nieto (circa 1850’s) also shared the last name Nieto, Lucio inherited the last name Nieto from his maternal grandfather, Miguel Nieto (born in Spain on 19 September 1870 - died in Mendoza, Argentina on 21 December 1951), who also inherited it from his father Juan Nieto (Spanish origin).
A study conducted by 23andMe indicated that Lucio ancestral composition was mostly Southern European (from his mother’s ancestry) with a small percentage of Indigenous American (from his father’s ancestry). A genealogical study suggests the family ancestral heritage was from Argentina, Chile, and Spain.
Early Life and Education
Lucio was the eldest child of Zabás Farías and María Concepción Nieto Hoya. Zabás was born on December 5, 1907 in Monte Comán, San Rafael, Mendoza, Argentina and died on May 24, 1981 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. María was born on December 8, 1906 on a ship from Spain and registered in Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires, Argentina and died on July 23, 1975 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. They married in Mendoza, Argentina on April 18, 1938. Soon after, Zabás became the head of the postal office at the Correo Oficial de la República Argentina in Las Cuevas, Mendoza, where he translated Morse Code and coordinated telegraphy transmissions. The family moved to Las Cuevas, where Lucio was born on August 24, 1938. The following year, on October 9, 1939, they had a daughter named Cristina Luvina in Valparaiso, Chile. They chose this location because of the better medical facilities available there.
Las Cuevas was a rural and underdeveloped area during the early 1930’s and 1940’s. Life in the village of Las Cuevas required endurance, with scarce supplies that were often delivered via airplane, no schools, poor services, and no nearby hospitals. The family lived on what they had, what they found, and what they hunted. Despite the harsh conditions, the family adapted to the unforgiving climate, thrived, and cared for each other in the challenging Andean setting. The landscape and environment of Las Cuevas left a lasting mark on Lucio's life.
At the age of four, Lucio moved from the village of Las Cuevas to the city of Mendoza where he started school at the Videla Correas Elementary School, where he was also enrolled to learn English. The family then moved to the town of Remedios de Escalada in Buenos Aires where Lucio completed High School and secondary studies at the Colegio Nacional No. 7, Juan Martin de Pueyrredón (National School No. 7, Juan Martín de Pueyrredon) on December 14, 1956.
The move from a rural area in the Andean landscape to an urban setting in the cosmopolitan city of Buenos Aires had a profound impact on Lucio's worldview and outlook on life. He had to adapt to a new and different culture, which was challenging and stressful. He also suffered from several illnesses that kept him bedridden for months. These experiences shaped his personality and his future work.
At the age of 16, Lucio enrolled at the Instituto Argentino Dibujo de Buenos Aires (the Argentinean Institute of Drawing of Buenos Aires), where he began his artistic career. His first classes in drawing were during the Curso de Dibujo Humorístico (Caricature Drawing). Lucio received his diploma on April 5, 1954; but continued sketching and drawing until his later years.
A few years later, in 1956, at the age of 18, Lucio studied accounting and completed the grade for Contabilidad Práctica (Practical Accounting) at the Colegio Esteban Echeverria in Buenos Aires (Esteban Echeverria School in Buenos Aires).
Martial Arts Career in Argentina and Chile
Lucio’s martial arts career started in 1958, at the age of 20, when he started training Judo with Sensei Omurazaki at the Nihon Jin Kai Association, an early martial arts association in Buenos Aires. After four rigorous years of martial arts training and following his black belt graduation, he inaugurated his first own dōjō (martial arts school), launching in 1962 in the city of Lanús, Buenos Aires, with the sponsorship from Sensei Hitoshi Nishizaka, a 6th dan in Judo. Six months later, Lucio earned his second dan (rank) in Kodokan Judo.
Then, in 1964, Lucio moved to Mendoza where he founded the Instituto Moderno Shudokan (Modern Institute Shudokan), located at 1425 San Martin Avenue in Mendoza. This constituted a pivotal point in his career; starting the development of martial arts programs for television, colleges, and universities. Lucio was supported by the television channel, Canal 7 (Difusora Mendoza S. A., located in Garibaldi 7, piso 5⁰ Piso) and rapidly expanded his martial arts programs and training to other areas in the region, including the Gimnasia y Esgrima de Mendoza (Club Atlético Gimnasia y Esgrima), the Andes Talleres Sport Club, the Club Mendoza de Regatas, the Colegio Santo Tomas de Aquino, the Asociación Cordobesa de Volantes, the Policía de Mendoza (Mendoza Police Department), the Air Force, the Colegio Aquinas (Aquinas College), and Universidad Nacional de Cuyo (National University of Cuyo).
The next year, in 1965, Lucio graduated his third dan in Kodokan Judo and a few years later, in 1967, Lucio graduated his fourth dan. Shortly after, Lucio started learning and training Karate Shōrin-ryū and then Gōjū-ryū (one of the main and original Okinawan styles of karate, founded by Chōjun Miyagi in 1930). After training several other karate styles, Lucio considered Gōjū-ryū as the one of the most effective martial arts styles in the world. In 1971, Lucio was awarded the first dan in Karate-Do Gōjū-ryū by the Asociacion Argentina de Karate-Do (Argentina Association of Karate-Do) in Buenos Aires. Although Lucio was proficient in both martial arts, he specialized in advanced Kodokan Judo techniques, which led to his graduation of fifth dan in 1975 in Kodokan Judo.
During the time periods of 1965 and 1966, Lucio's most prominent involvement as an instructor was at the Escuela Superior de Policía (Superior Police School) in Mendoza, Argentina where Lucio’s main profession was to cross-train Police Officers in advanced martial arts techniques and self defense. Lucio also participated and was selected as a referee in various martial arts events at the Federacion Cordobesa de Yudo (Judo Cordoba Federation) in 1966.
Several Argentinean elite teams were cross-trained by Lucio within the Police Department and the Argentinean Air Force. During this time period, Lucio had the opportunity to fly in a military jet over the Argentinean volcanos, access military training with firearms, and military parachute training. This helped Lucio and the family gain access to greater services and housing at the Barrio Official de la Policía (a housing complex for Police Officers and their families), while boosting his career to cross-train new aspiring martial artists in this new developing area.
In the early 1970’s, Lucio was involved in various significant martial arts events in Argentina, including tournaments, the Curso de Arbitraje Internacional de Judo Kodokan (International Judo Kodokan Referee Class), and the Olympic classifications for Argentina. At this point, Lucio was a well known and respected martial artist in Mendoza and the neighboring areas. He was recognized as a “Pionero del Judo Cuyano” (Judo Pioneer in Cuyo, Argentina) and participated in several prominent events at the Federación de Yudo Cuyana (Judo Cuyo Federation).
Lucio’s teaching style was exemplary and detail-oriented. His lectures included live demonstrations of techniques from basic to advanced so all students could access knowledge regardless of their levels. Often, he referred to this method of training as open for everyone, and for all students to learn. Although some advanced techniques were kept secret by masters, Lucio taught these techniques to all students, which on some occasions, caused controversies as these were usually reserved for advanced students.
In Judo, Lucio' signature technique was Harai Goshi, a technique that he applied from the left side with impressive speed and effectiveness, “...like a train hitting a car”. A technique that he championed in the earlier years and applied it during kumite (hand to hand combat) against any opponent. Moreover, Lucio used his extensive experience in martial arts to add effectiveness to his techniques, mixing Judo, Karate, and self defense.
Separately, Lucio became an architect at the age of 38, graduating from the Universidad de Mendoza on October 22, 1976. The next year, on November 22, 1977, the university appointed him as the Jefe del Departamento de Educación Física (Head of the Sports Education Department) to oversee the sports programs for the whole institution. Lucio was deeply influenced by the Andean landscape during his childhood. He was inspired by the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier and the American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, but he also developed his own style of landscape architecture. He used mixed media to create sketches and renderings that complemented his blueprints and technical drawings, showing both precision and creativity. He based his landscapes on the natural shapes and essence of the Andean mountains and landscapes. His landscapes were based on the natural forms and essence of the Andean mountains and landscapes. Natural sounds, native flora species, and stones were carefully selected and incorporated into each waterfall, garden, and architectural landscape. His family archives preserve many of his original drawings, as well as handwritten manuscripts and personal letters to his relatives.
Lucio attended several seminars on topics such as landscape design, ecology, and system design. He also joined professional associations such as the Sociedad de Paisajismo and the Sociedad de Arquitectura y Construcción. From his experience, Lucio founded and developed three main companies for landscape and design. Parkicentro, located in Mendoza, Argentina, Jardiseño in the city of Valencia, Venezuela, and Garden Design MI in the city of Wyoming, Michigan, United States. Jardiseño introduced the first known hydroponics gardens in the city, located in the city of El Viñedo in the early 1980’s.
Marriages and Children
On August 3, 1962, at the age of 23, Lucio married María Felisa Prado, a student in the city of Remedios de Escalada, Lanús, Buenos Aires. From this marriage, his first son Lucio Alejandro Farías, was born on January 8, 1963.
A few years later, in 1966, Lucio met Gisela Kalotai at the Andes Talleres Sport Club (also known as Club Tallers) in Mendoza; to whom he would spend the rest of his life. Lucio and Gisela married on June 21, 1967. From this marriage, three children Federico, Diego, and Pablo were born in Mendoza and then, Gisel, his only daughter, was born later in Valencia, Venezuela.
Martial Arts Career in Venezuela and Aruba
The Argentinean economic instability of the 1980’s along with the loss both parents (María Concepción Nieto on July 24, 1975 and Sabás Farías on May 24, 1981) and the loss of Gisela’s parents within a short period of time, led Lucio to rethink his position, broaden his view, and focus on pursuing a better future for his family. Lucio, Juani (another Architect from Mendoza), and both families departed from Mendoza to New York City in a flight from Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) stopping in Brazil and Venezuela. While the flight stopped in Caracas, Venezuela for several hours, Lucio established connections with the local community, which indicated that the martials arts in Venezuela were considerably undeveloped. But, there was a great potential to grow, especially in the city of Valencia, which was expanding and developing at a rapid pace within its industries. Lucio saw a unique opportunity to revamp and develop the martial arts further, with his backup in architecture and entrepreneur mindset. With his knowledge and proven experience from working in Argentina, Lucio decided to stay in Venezuela instead of continuing to New York City and restart his career in the city of Valencia, which at that time, possessed a great economic opportunity.
The Aruba Judo Association, under the administration of Sebastian Falcon-Tromp, sponsored Lucio in 1995 to support and advance the Judo program in Aruba. Lucio visited Aruba on several occasions to help reestablish and improve the Judo program He introduced Judo techniques and provided ongoing martial arts support to the Aruba Judo team. This resulted in significant improvements to the Aruba Judo team with the introduction of advanced Judo techniques and the continuous martial arts support from a master. Additionally, Lucio assisted the Exam Committee in Aruba, which was coordinated by Henk Harm (Holland 5 Dan) and Eddy Snijdara (Curaçao 5 Dan).
In 1995, Lucio traveled back to Argentina to re-encounter the old masters and visit the family. In Argentina, Lucio was awarded 6 Dan (Rokku-Dan) by the Confederación Argentina de Judo (Argentine Confederation of Judo). Lucio participated at the Curso Anual de la Confederación Argentina de Judo (Annual Course from the Argentina Judo Confederation) and the Curso General Técnico (Technical General Course). The satisfactory completion for testing and performance of this event was held at the Centro Nacional de Alto Rendimiento Deportivo (National Center for High Sport Performance).
Due to the oil prices collapsing during the 1980’s, the once great Venezuelan economy declined significantly into the early 1990’s. This triggered a rapid devaluation of the currency and the plummeting of the standard of living where poverty, crime, political and social instability emerged as the new standard. Although Lucio had already become a Venezuelan citizen and enjoyed many aspects of the city of Valencia, the city that once welcomed him in full bloom and supplied unlimited opportunities to grow, was now insecure, unstable, and with an uncertain future. The basic life supplies and necessities for the family were increasingly difficult to obtain. Making any progress, especially for many entrepreneurs and small business owners, was a significant struggle, which made surviving on a day-to-day basis a considerable challenge.
Martial Arts Career in the United States of America
During the 90’s, Lucio emigrated to the United States of America with his family. Lucio founded the martial arts association International Budokan, Hombu Dojo USA in West Michigan, with support from the Muskegon Community College. Subsequently, providing direct support to colleges and universities with martial arts instruction. Soon after, Lucio continued the development of the Judo program in Muskegon, Michigan, where he taught martial arts for several years.
The US Department of Homeland Security of the United States of America granted Lucio and his family the US Citizenship upon recognition of “Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement” for his extensive martial arts background and community involvement. Lucio was honored to continue his collaboration to support the community for the common good and develop further the martial arts programs within these communities.
Although Lucio participated in many martial arts organizations, he established a personal relationship with a key renowned martial artist, Philip S. Porter, the founder of the United States Martial Arts Association (USMA) to which he was introduced and developed a long-term mutual and respectful friendship. Philip S. Porter considered Lucio, “A great champion and teacher and true friend” as shown in a personal letter from the family archives. The USMA inducted and awarded Lucio several recognitions, securing a solid place in the USMA International Martial Arts Hall of Fame, including:
- Pioneer Award
- Founders of the USMA
- Trustee Life Member
- Silver Life Award
- Golden Life Award
- Certified Master Instructor
- International Instructor of the Year
- Grand Master of the Year
- Grandmaster Council International.
Lucio had extensive experience in teaching martial arts to various groups of students. He worked as a leader, instructor, and director at various educational organizations. From 2002 to 2003, Lucio taught martial arts at the Creative Technologies Academy in Cedar Springs, Michigan. He also contributed to the success of the martial arts program at the Ramblewood Tennis and Health Club in 2004, where he was responsible for the Martial Arts programs. Additionally, he taught martial arts to students in the after-school program at Camp Fire USA/21st Century - Elementary School and Burton Middle School in 2004. Also, Lucio taught martial arts at the Riverside Middle School and Muskegon Community College in Muskegon, Michigan. Furthermore, he completed a PhD at the American College of Martial Arts in Illinois in 2004.
Lucio was a passionate reader who pursued lifelong learning. He had a large collection of books on martial arts and architecture. He not only taught martial arts to a diverse group of learners, such as students, teachers, friends, and family, but also studied and instructed various subjects at different schools, such as fine arts, crafts (origami), software (Autocad), until his later years.
Lucio participated in martial arts events, instruction, and tournaments for several decades and won numerous awards. He had hundreds of medals, trophies, and certificates that were on display at the Gojukan Center dōjō in Valencia and the Venoco Club in Guacara. From his entire collection, Lucio only kept a few hand-drawn diplomas of significant importance from his studies in Argentina and some recognitions hand-signed by his students.
Lucio pursued his career in landscape architecture in the United States, but he also focused on the promotion of martial arts within the community. In his later years, Lucio scaled back his involvement in architectural projects and gardens, but he remained active in attending seminars at various professional associations and institutions, such as the American Society of Safety Professionals, the Continuing Education and Training Conference, International Facility Management Association, the Symposium on Traffic Safety, Safety & Security Management for the Build Environment, the Plants Identification Workshop at the MNLA and Michigan State University, and Builder Pre-License Seminar at the Muskegon Community College. Lucio also completed the Labor Risk Prevention Studies at the AMYCA Institute in Spain. Lucio also taught at several educational institutions in Michigan, including Muskegon Community College, Baker College, and ITT Technical Institute (before it ceased operations nationwide).
Publications
There are four known manuscripts that were written and illustrated by Lucio Farías:
- Guía De Karatedo Goju-Ryu por Lucio Farías - Only one known original copy exist
- Judo - Teoría por Lucio Farías - Only one known original copy exist
- Architecture - Only one original copy exist (missing various pages) and a few copies made by Lucio’s students
- Kōdōkan Goshin Jutsu - Published electronically
Final Months and Death
In late October of 2017, Lucio experienced heart complications and was admitted to the
Private Life
Lucio was a man of many talents and interests. He had a deep love for languages and could speak fluent English, Spanish and had working knowledge in Hungarian, Japanese, Italian, and French. He was also an excellent cook and enjoyed preparing Spanish dishes for his family. Lucio had a great appreciation for nature and would often take his children on hikes in the mountains in Mendoza, Argentina, Valencia, and Caracas, Venezuela. He was an avid soccer fan and would never miss a FIFA game when the Argentinean team played. Lucio’s love for life was contagious, and he will always be remembered as a kind-hearted man who lived life to the fullest. In his free time, Lucio enjoyed playing chess, listening to music, and gardening. He had a green thumb and took great pride in the beautiful gardens he created. Lucio also had a passion for birth watching and his love for nature extended to his desire to help people, and support his community.