The Universidad Industrial de Santander (UIS) is preparing for a new milestone in its artistic and academic history. This Tuesday, October 14, the monumental sculpture Axis Vitae (Axis of Life) will be officially unveiled. The piece adorns the main plaza of the new Academic and Scientific Complex for Research in Health and Life Sciences – Faculty of Health, a work that merges art, science, and technology in tribute to knowledge and life itself.
Designed by artist and architect Juan José Cobos, a UIS graduate, the 14-meter-tall sculpture weighing over two tons represents a human spine reinterpreted through the aesthetics of metal and light. With a bronze sacrum and coccyx and 24 polished steel vertebrae, Axis Vitae rises as a metaphor for the support and strength that the health sciences provide to society.
The monument, created in collaboration with the technical team of Néstor Monsalve S.A.S., was conceived alongside the architectural design of the building, achieving a harmonious visual integration with the modern lines of glass, concrete, and steel that define the complex. Its mirror-like surface reflects the surroundings, while its internal and ambient lighting system transforms the piece into a spectacle of light after sunset.
According to its author, “Axis Vitae is an offering to life, a spine that sustains knowledge and hope — a gift from the University to Bucaramanga.”
With this new sculpture, UIS reaffirms its commitment to public art and holistic education, where science meets aesthetic sensitivity. The unveiling ceremony will take place on Tuesday, October 14, in the plaza of the Faculty of Health, with the presence of university authorities, artists, and the academic community.
Axis Vitae now stands as a new icon of UIS — a column that connects art, science, and the soul of those who dedicate their lives to caring for health and knowledge.
