May 14, 2023 • 52

Lens-Artists #249: Art in the Park in Spain

We are in Spain this month, spending time in the beautiful city of Málaga on the Costa del Sol. So, it will be no surprise that I’m contributing to John’s Art in the Park challenge with some very recent photos from Málaga, as well as others from Madrid, Sevilla, and Grenada. Ready? Here we go:

I found this very expressive mural on the wall of a restaurant in Sevilla. The look of pride and determination on the faces of the toreadors reflects the place of honor and respect that bullfighters have had in the Spanish tradition.

This memorial to a pair of tragic lovers comes from a wall of a house on a quiet Seville street. Their affair dates back to the Inquisition when Susona, a Jewish girl, fell in love with a Christian. Needless to say, it wasn’t a fairy-tale ending. But still, the tale of forbidden love is a stark reminder of Spain’s religious fervor at that time.

Plaza Major is the largest square in Madrid, so it’s no surprise that this billboard was the largest I’ve ever seen. To get a sense of its scale, take a look at the pedestrians in the background.

I captured this image on a recent walk along the Playa de la Malagueta, one of Málaga’s expansive beaches. This child with a sunburn was a vivid reminder of my summer days at the beach decades ago.

I almost walked past this tiny piece of street art in Sevilla. It is a bit of a mystery. Is it by Banksy or by a graffiti artist who is imitating him? So far, I haven’t been able to identify the artist, but I love his/her sense of humor.

This final image decorated a corregated door on a sidestreet in Sevilla. I love the peaceful mood captured here, as well as the colors and details.

Wherever we travel, I am always on the lookout for local art, which gives artists a venue to display their creative work and reach a wider audience. Many thanks to John Steiner for featuring street art this week, which beautifies cities large and small all over the world. Be sure to visit John’s site so you can enjoy his photos and his post. Include a link to his challenge and the Lens-Artists tag so we can all enjoy your photos.

Thanks also to those of you who joined last week’s Mood challenge, which highlighted a wide and wonderful range of moods captured all around the world. Next week, Amy will lead us so be sure to check out her Share and Connect site next Saturday at noon EST. Until then, have week filled with plenty of sunshine and inspiration.

Interested in joining the Lens-Artists challenge? Click here for more information.

Categories: LENS-ARTISTS, Photography

Tagged as: , , , , , , ,

52 replies »

  2. It’s wonderful how evocative these are of Spain and Spanish history, even the sunburnt child. And Spain, along with Mexico, is probably one of the only places to celebrate bullfighting. As grim as it is to attend a bullfight, there is such a long tradition of this that it can’t be ignored.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply

    • So true, Elizabeth. It can’t be ignored. The citizens of Malaga are now trying to figure out the best use of the bullring. So the tradition is changing.

      Like

      Reply

  12. Absolutely love those first two, Patti! Glad you’re enjoying Spain. We made 2 trips across the border in the last 2 days, to walk and to attend a Romeria. Fabulous stuff! I need a rest this week.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  18. Great selection Patti! It’s funny that I’ve been to Madrid but don’t have any memory of this kind of a display. So now I need to dig through my pictures to find what did I see in Plaza Mayor 😀!

    Like

    Reply

  19. Great art, all. I love the toreadors, though I saw one bullfight in Spain in 1970 and found it a bit unpleasant to watch, killing the bull with swords, etc. I’m a woos, perhaps.

    Like

    Reply

  21. You KNOW I loved this. The mural at Plaza Major is massive and certainly an invitation to passerbys to “shop here”. In some ways I am glad the “Bansky” mural is a mystery. It allows to decide what it might be, and before I read your information I was thinking how often I saw the people cleaning their spaces. Always pride in ownership. My favorite is the toreadors. The faces are definitely that of a proud tradition. When we lived there, we hired some locals to teach our daughters how to do Sevilleana. During the dance they were taught the importance of the facial expressions. It was interesting to me. We learned later, those locals were national champions. Nice memories for me…and a fabulous post.

    Like

    Reply

  23. Lovely pictures for the challenge! I’ve spent a lot of time in Spain and your pictures really capture it well. I’m wondering about the Plaza. It looks more like Plaza de España though instead of Plaza Mayor. I recognized the building the art is attached to as I lived not too far from there while a student in Madrid. Thanks for posting pics of one of my favorite places in the world!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

      • Oh good. I was trying to word it such that I didn’t sound like a know-it-all 😊 But I do know a lot about Madrid having lived there during my junior year of college….eons ago! And I’ve been back many times. Hoping to go back next spring again 🤞 Enjoy the rest of your time there!

        Liked by 1 person

  24. Pingback: Lens-ArtistPC-249-Park-Art – WoollyMuses
  25. Pingback: Lens-ArtistPC-249-Public-Art – WoollyMuses

Don't Be Shy! Drop Me A Line.

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.