Francisco Sainz de la Maza Ruiz was born in Burgos (Castille) and moved to Barcelona (Catalonia) at a very young age, where he devoted his life to his two great passions: painting and teaching. The result of both are over 300 art works including oil paintings, watercolors and drawings, scattered in many collections both within Spain and abroad, and more than 500 pupils that attended his drawing and painting academy throughout the 50 years.
Francisco was born to a Castilian family, being the third of a total of 6 siblings. Three of them, Regino, Eduardo and Mariano, became professional musicians, while Francisco preferred painting.
When he was only 10 years old he started his education in San Sebastián as apprentice of the painters Alejandro Irureta and Rogelio Gordón. Later on, in 1915, he entered the Escuela Superior de Bellas Artes de San Fernando (College of Fine Arts of San Fernando) in Madrid where he pursued official studies.
In 1918 he completed his studies with the painter and pedagogue Ignacio Mallol in Barcelona, the city where he finally settled and developed his professional career. In 1927 he established his school of drawing and painting at Portal del Ángel street in Barcelona, which he moved to Paseo de Gracia in 1950, to the very same location where Santiago Rusiñol had had his study before. Many internationally renowned artists and architects started their careers in that school, and their gratitude towards him was one of the main rewards for Francisco Sainz de la Maza. Throughout his life he participated successfully in many exhibitions and was recognized with different awards and important public assignments.
He married Mª Luisa Lasoli Trias in 1929 and fathered 3 daughters: Mª Luisa, Mª Victoria and Regina.
He died in 1984 after a life devoted to painting and teaching.