📅 A Presentation that Marked a Before and After
The Poster for the 2024 Holy Week in Seville was presented on Saturday 27 January 2024 in the auditorium of the Fundación Caja Rural del Sur, located in Plaza de la Magdalena. The chosen date marked a change from the previous year, as in 2023 it had been presented after Lent had already begun, whereas this time they returned to the tradition of holding it in January, eighteen days before Ash Wednesday.
The event was presided over by the president of the General Council of Brotherhoods and Confraternities, Francisco Vélez, and was attended by the author of the work, the Sevillian painter Salustiano García Cruz, who unveiled an image that would leave no one indifferent.
Who is the Artist of the 2024 Holy Week in Seville Poster?
🎨 The Author: Salustiano García Cruz, an Established Artist
The commission to create the Poster for the 2024 Holy Week in Seville was given to Salustiano García Cruz (Seville, 1965), a painter of renowned prestige whose work is characterised by a realistic style with a very personal use of colour. His signature has crossed borders and his international career has taken him to exhibit in galleries in New York, Miami, London and Paris.
The artist’s selection by the Council of Brotherhoods took place in September 2023, valuing his career and his ability to bring a renewed perspective to the brotherhood tradition. Salustiano, who is no stranger to the world of sacred art, approached the commission with a deep sense of responsibility.
“I wanted to make a poster that was respectful to the institutions and to all Christians,” the artist declared after the media storm sparked by his work.
What does the 2024 Holy Week in Seville Poster Represent?
🖼️ The 2024 Holy Week in Seville Poster: A Young, Beautiful and Luminous Christ
The work, an oil on canvas, deliberately moved away from the traditional canons that usually preside over such commissions. Rather than the image of the suffering, tortured Christ of the Passion, Salustiano chose to depict the “most luminous part of Holy Week”: the Resurrection.
What Elements Make Up the 2024 Holy Week in Seville Poster?
Background
- Intense red, characteristic of the author’s palette
- Known as “Salustiano red”
Figure
- Risen Christ, young and without marks of torture
- Represents the God in Christ, beyond Man
Face
- Inspired by his son Horacio
- A live model that brings youthful, serene beauty
Cloth of purity
- Reproduces that of the Santísimo Cristo de la Expiración (El Cachorro)
- A tribute to one of Seville’s most beloved images
Potencies
- Those worn by the Christ of the Brotherhood of Love
- A direct connection with Sevillian brotherhood imagery
The author explained that the figure was not based on a specific image, but on the idea of serenity. He was inspired by the memory of his elder brother, who died young, and by the peace conveyed by his face.
The cloth covering Christ’s waist, which some critics pointed out as controversial, was chosen by Salustiano as a tribute to the city: “My Christ shows the same skin as the Christ of El Cachorro,” he argued.
🔥Why is the 2024 Holy Week in Seville Poster So Controversial?
The unveiling of the Poster for the 2024 Holy Week in Seville triggered one of the most viral artistic controversies in recent years in Seville. Within hours, the image was trending on social media and the debate transcended the brotherhood sphere to reach national dimensions.
Criticism and Conflicting Opinions:
- The most conservative sector and ultra‑Catholic groups: Labelled the image as an “effeminate Christ”, “mannered” and “sexualised”. The Institute of Social Policy (Ipse) described the poster as a “true shame and aberration”. Christian Lawyers announced they were studying legal action and a Change.org petition was launched for its withdrawal.
- The author defended himself: “If anyone sees something dirty in my painting, it is their own inner dirt that they are projecting onto the image,” Salustiano stated in an interview. He also joked about the criticism related to shaving: “I can’t believe it when I read it because, as far as we know, no Christ has body hair.”
- Defence by the LGBTIQ+ community: In response to homophobic comments, the LGBTIQ+ community came out in defence of the work, championing artistic freedom and the beauty of the image.
- Authoritative voices in favour: The anthropologist from the University of Seville, Isidoro Moreno, pointed out that the controversy highlighted the struggle between an integrist sector that cannot tolerate anything outside the norm and a more open, plural vision of Holy Week. Journalist Fran López de Paz recalled that “whenever something more innovative and groundbreaking appears, the mechanisms of the more conservative wing tend to kick in”.
What Do Those Who Defend the 2024 Holy Week in Seville Poster Say?
The Mayor of Seville, José Luis Sanz (PP): “I like it. It’s different, brave and risky. Not all Holy Week posters can be the same or identical every year.”
The Archbishop of Seville, José Ángel Saiz: Made a very veiled allusion to the work in his homily, without questioning it, and called for maturity and a focus on Holy Week.
🏛️ Difference with the 2023 Poster: From Costumbrismo to the Avant‑Garde
The difference with the previous year’s poster is abysmal and explains part of the impact. The 2023 Holy Week Poster was the work of Daniel Franca Camacho and was titled “Recuerdo” (Memory).
It was a costumbrista image depicting the Virgin of Estrella during a “levantá” (lifting) of the canopy, evoking the artist’s childhood alongside his father. It was an emotive work, within the traditional canons of brotherhood photography, which generated no controversy.
In 2022 there was also controversy, albeit lesser, with Manolo Cuervo’s poster. The “Andalusian pop” artist painted the Christ of El Cachorro in his characteristic style, with vivid colours and a bold composition, which also drew criticism from the more purist sectors.
📜 A Brief History: The Posters of Holy Week in Seville
The history of the Holy Week in Seville poster is the story of how a city has announced its most important festival for over a century.
Before 1980: The City Council was responsible for the Spring Festivals poster, which included both Holy Week and the Fair.
1980 – 1991: The Council of Brotherhoods assumed responsibility and opted for a photograph for the poster. The first was an image of the Santísimo Cristo de la Salud of the Brotherhood of San Bernardo, by José María Guillén.
From 1992 onwards: A radical change took place. The Council decided that the poster should be a painting. Since then, the poster has been a pictorial commission, giving rise to a rich and varied gallery of styles ranging from the most classical realism to the avant‑garde.
1992
- First painted poster by the Council
2003
2015
2017
2019
2022
- Pop art of El Cachorro (Controversial)
2023
- Virgin of Estrella (Costumbrista)
2024
- Risen Christ (The Great Controversy)
This journey demonstrates that, although the 2024 controversy has been the loudest, the history of the poster is filled with moments when art has sought to engage with tradition, sometimes with greater fortune, sometimes with greater uproar.
🏡 For THE SUN PLACES, Holy Week is much more than a week of processions; it is the deepest expression of Sevillian identity. Salustiano’s poster, beyond the controversy, has achieved something unprecedented: it has brought Seville’s Holy Week into the global conversation, reaffirming that it is a living festival, capable of generating debate and passion.
If you come to Seville to experience Holy Week, we offer you the best Luxury Apartments in Seville, located in strategic areas of the historic centre, so you can enjoy the processions with maximum comfort and return to a haven of tranquillity and elegance.
“Holy Week in Seville is tradition, but it is also passion and debate. At THE SUN PLACES, we open the doors to the city for you to experience it from within, with the comfort you deserve.”
📞 Contact THE SUN PLACES to book your Luxury Apartment in Seville during Holy Week. We will help you discover the secrets of the most eagerly awaited festival of the year.