"Fluffy Jesus": How a ruined fresco brought prosperity to an entire city. Fluffy Jesus (photo) Sponge Bob in the style of "Minecraft"

80-year-old amateur artist Cecilia Giménez had nothing but good intentions when she turned her attention to a deteriorating mural depicting Jesus Christ on a wall in the Temple of Mercy in the small Spanish town of Borja.

A fresco called "Ecce Homo" (meaning "Behold the Man") was created Spanish artist Elias García Martínez in 1930. Although this work, according to the general opinion in the press, had "small artistic value because "Martinez is not a great artist and his painting "Ecce Homo" is not a "masterpiece", the fresco has nonetheless acquired some sentimental value among the local population.

So, when the original paint on the fresco began to peel off, Cecilia Jimenez, who had no special education, undertook to restore an aging work of art.

Damaged fresco "Ecce Homo" on the left and its "restored" version on the right.

Jimenez touched up the painting stroke by stroke for several years with the knowledge of the parish priest and church watchmen, until one day in the summer of 2012 she decided that the fresco needed a major restoration. In the middle of the "restoration process", Jimenez went on vacation because the work took much longer than she thought. The woman intended to complete it upon her return, but for better or worse, she never got the chance again.

By the time she returned from vacation, her failed efforts were known to the general public, and Jimenez had become the laughingstock of the world. The failed restoration main theme on the Internet, giving rise to many memes and jokes on the worldwide web. Journalists compared the restoration with how famous character Rowan Atkinson's Mr Bean ruined Whistler's Mother. Some have compared the painting to blurry image potatoes and monkeys. Others called her " Fluffy Jesus" and "Ecce Mono" ("Behold the monkey").

Jimenez felt so humiliated that she cried for several days and, according to her relatives, refused to eat. As a result, the woman had to seek the help of a psychiatrist and take medication. At some point, the heirs of Garcia Martinez threatened to sue Cecilia Jimenez for damaging the painting, but, fortunately for her, did not follow through.

Original intact painting (left), damaged painting (middle) and restoration by Cecilia Jiménez (right).

Now, in a strange twist of fate, the small obscure town of Borja has suddenly appeared on the international tourist route. Every year, tens of thousands of curious visitors with a strange sense of humor come from the far corners of the world to see the tragic fiasco with their own eyes and go home with various souvenirs, such as mugs and T-shirts depicting the "new and improved" "Ecce Homo" mural.

Cecilia Jimenez, whose failed attempt to restore a church painting once drew mockery and ridicule, is now a local celebrity. She presents prizes in a competition for young artists who write their own versions of the painting "Ecce Homo". People recognize her on the street and shout: "It's Cecilia! It's Cecilia!" It even has 49% of the proceeds from the sale of souvenirs. The rest goes to the family of the artist Martinez.

Cecilia Jimenez may not have been able to restore the painting, but she managed to revive the fate of her city. The influx of tourists has helped stabilize the economy of the city of Borja, which has been reeling from the economic downturn that has plagued the rest of Spain over the past few years.

"For me, it's a story of faith," said Andrew Flack, an opera librettist who penned a comic opera about how a woman ruined a fresco and saved a city. "It's a miracle she was able to help tourism flourish!"

"Why do people come to see a mural if it is such a work of art?" he asks. "It's a kind of pilgrimage turned into a phenomenon by the media. The ways of the Lord are inscrutable. Your catastrophe may turn out to be a miracle for me."

Mr. Bean's "restored" painting by James McNeill Whistler "Arrangement in Gray and Black: The Artist's Mother" from the movie "Mr. Bean", 1997

Assortment of souvenirs "Ecce Homo".

A collection of Internet memes about the failed restoration of the "Ecce Homo" fresco.

Tourists lined up to look at a church painting "Ecce Homo" on an altar at the Temple of Mercy in Borja, Spain.

For several years now, tens of thousands of tourists have been striving for the Temple of Mercy, located in the Spanish city of Borja. They want to see with their own eyes one small fresco depicting Jesus Christ. But instead of reverence, involuntary chuckles break out from some, while others look away in bewilderment. The fact is that the fresco was restored. It just turned into something completely unimaginable.

83-year-old resident of the Spanish city of Borja, Cecilia Jimenez, did not think anything bad when she offered her help in the restoration of the fresco "Ecce Homo", created by the artist Elias Garcia Martinez in 1932. The painting began to crumble and threatened to completely disappear, so with the permission of the rector of the temple, the parishioner took up restoration paintings. It took her 2 years.

When people saw the updated fresco, many could not say anything because of the shock they experienced. Instead of Jesus, there was now a creature from children's drawings. Some called the fresco "potato with eyes", others - "monkey", and still others - "Fluffy Jesus". Relatives of the artist who painted the mural even wanted to sue the elderly woman.

Cecilia Jimenez sincerely did not understand what she was guilty of when a flurry of indignation and reproaches fell on her from all sides.

However, ironically, the town has become popular with tourists. Everyone wanted to see what the old woman had done with the fresco. Soon the servants of the temple introduced a symbolic entrance fee, and souvenir shops appeared on the street nearby. When Cecilia Jimenez found out about this, she immediately went to claim her share of the profits. The authorities went to meet the woman, because, thanks to her "restoration" and the influx of tourists, the economy of the city of Borja stabilized.

Some art historians have already attributed "Fluffy Jesus" to the style of painting "primitivism" and compared with the works of such masters as Goya and Munch.
By the way, the work of Edvard Munch was also perceived by contemporaries ambiguously.

People build houses and paint pictures, create household items and art. In contact with such objects every day, we imperceptibly "influence" them, leading to wear and tear. Houses are covered with cracks like a colorful layer of paintings, clothes wear out, and books are overgrown with scuffs. That is why, along with the art of creation, the art of restoration appeared - restoration. Everything that loses its aesthetic appearance at a certain stage of time needs restoration. This is a responsible and time-consuming process that requires the practical skills of the artist, and therefore history knows not only high-quality examples of restorations, but also very depressing ones. About such unsuccessful examples of the restoration of works of art in this article.

Brighter, higher, stronger!

French art experts have started a real scandal, accusing the Louvre of a terrible restoration. It is worth noting that we are talking about a painting by Leonardo da Vinci. This is not an ordinary portrait of a noble person, but a work painted with the brush of the greatest master of painting. The essence of the accusations boils down to the excessive brightness that the canvas acquired after the restoration work. Such a degree of brightness, according to experts, does not correspond to the original idea of ​​the author. The Louvre notes that this was the most discussed restoration of all that was planned, and the committee approached the work with great care. But these are all colorful words, but in fact two representatives of the museum left the committee in protest against the inappropriate restoration. This is Segolene Bergeon Langle, who was responsible for the work of restorers in all national museums France, and Jean-Pierre Cuzan, former curator of paintings at the Louvre. In their opinion, during the restoration work, important analyzes were not carried out that would determine the detrimental effect of a potent solvent. Langal and Kuzan generally considered the use of a solvent unacceptable, but the British masters said that the materials would not spoil Leonardo's unique pictorial effect, called sfumato. The committee ultimately rated the work of the restorers as acceptable, but independent experts agree that the lightening of the surface pretty much spoiled the picture. Perhaps the British restorers added brightness so that we could see the masterpiece as it originally looked in the da Vinci workshop, because some paint pigments darken over time and lose their juiciness.

Sad pictures

Restoration of historical heritage always has great importance in every state. It can be castles, buildings, paintings or frescoes. In our case, the object of work was a centuries-old fresco of the Qing Dynasty, located in a temple on Phoenix Mountain. The drawing that adorned the walls was in a deplorable state, the outlines of the figures lost their clarity, and the paint, exhausted by time, was visibly peeling. The enterprising rector of the temple himself organized the collection of donations for restoration, which required 660 thousand dollars. During the restoration work, many violations were made, and the saddest thing is that the artist practically painted new heroes who do not repeat the plot of the original painting. Restoration categorically does not allow the creation of a new image on top of the old one, but only tints the necessary fragments. Visitors to the temple note that the beautiful fresco was hopelessly damaged and looks like a cheap decoration. Two officials responsible for carrying out such work were fired, but the customer noted that he was satisfied with the result. Unfortunately, it is obvious that the use of simple colors and the manner of the artist revealed to the world cartoon scenes in the halls of an ancient Chinese temple.

Fluffy Jesus

Sometimes unsuccessful restorations can become the object of not only disappointment and criticism. This happened with the fresco depicting the image of Christ in the Temple of Mercy. The temple is located in provincial town Bohra, the author of the fresco is Elias Garcia Martinez. The parishioner of the temple decided that the work needed restoration work and decided to do it personally. In 2010, 80-year-old pensioner Cecilia Jimenez began a personal restoration, according to her, the rector of the temple allowed her to do this, but this information was not officially confirmed. The process was completed in the summer of 2012, and Cecilia's work literally blew up the Internet when the pictures hit the net. The finished work looked more like a furry monkey or, upon closer examination, Jesus in fur hat. Experts were outraged, summarizing that this was the worst restoration work in history. Perhaps this is so, but Cecilia Jimenez, in addition to ill-wishers, appeared defenders who pointed to the old age of the pensioner, and the resulting hype is a consequence of her kindness and desire to help the temple. And the help was really great. The unsuccessful restoration attracted a huge number of tourists, and the temple collected over 50 thousand euros in charitable assistance.

Wet business

Innovative artists amaze the public not with paintings that are familiar to the eye, but with installations and art objects that are assembled from all available materials. Modern Art so beyond understanding that sometimes very curious cases happen to him. One of these happened in the Dortmund Gallery with the participation of a conscientious cleaner. The tidying woman ruined the work of art, deciding that it was just a wet spot. The work was called "When it began to drip from the ceiling", made by sculptor Martin Kipenberger. The art object was a rubber trough, inside of which there was a wooden tower made of boards. The lime mortar at the bottom of the tank imitated rainwater and was an integral part of the composition. The hard-working cleaner, however, made her own adjustments and carefully wiped the puddle. The sculpture is estimated at 800,000 euros and was rented by the gallery from a private collector. Gallery workers claim that the work cannot be restored, and the unfortunate cleaning lady, whose details were not disclosed, was reprimanded.

The restoration of the fresco Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man") in our time is far from the only example unsuccessful restoration. Not so long ago, the Louvre was accused of poor-quality restoration of Leonardo da Vinci's painting "Saint Anna with the Madonna and the Christ Child" (1510), after which both restorers filed an application to leave the museum.

In the Prado Museum, during the restoration of El Greco's painting "Portrait of a Cavalier with a Hand on His Chest" (1577-1579), the name of the artist at the bottom of the painting was erased.

Until now, the palm belonged to the former Prime Minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi, who "sewn" the missing body parts to Venus and Mars (). Then art experts called this act tasteless and aesthetically incorrect, and some even equated Berlusconi's decision with vandalism.

On August 21, a small note appeared in the Spanish edition of Heraldo, which reported how terrible a resident small town Borja restored the fresco Ecce Homo, painted by the artist Elias García Martinez and located in the Temple of Mercy. Before that, the name of Cecilia Jimenez was unknown to anyone, just as, however, few knew about the existence of the city of Borja with a population of only 5,000 inhabitants and about the picture itself, which the whole world is now talking about.

The story of the "most terrible restoration" was picked up by all the world's media, and it turned into a real triumph for the author of the fresco. After all, until that moment the name of the artist Elias Garcia Martinez was known only to a narrow circle of specialists. He was born in the municipality of Requena in 1858, where he began to draw, then studied painting at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Saint Carlos, then went to Barcelona, ​​and after it to Zaragoza. In Zaragoza, the artist married, taught at the School of Art. There he died.

Artistic value the frescoes are not very large, but the locals appreciated it. She did not leave indifferent and Cecilia. According to her, the constantly deteriorating state of the fresco, caused by high humidity in the room, made her very upset. That's when the idea of ​​restoration came up.

Now, however, the “restorer” assures that the idea to restore the painting did not belong to her, but to the priest: “The priest, of course, knew about this. Of course, I worked because I was asked to. Of course, everyone knew what I was doing. When people came to church, they saw me drawing. The pastor knew. How could I do such things without permission?”

But representatives of the church insist that they knew nothing about the artistic work of their elderly parishioner. According to them, she independently decided to restore it and started work in 2010. It is hard to believe that all these two years no one paid attention to what the woman was doing, despite the fact that a security guard is constantly on duty in the church.

Cecilia Jimenez draws from the very beginning early childhood. And this, by the way, is not the first time she restores paintings for her native village, but so far there have been no complaints about her.

“I have many works, some better, others worse, but they are all made with great love,” says Cecilia in an interview with a Spanish journalist El Mundo. She has organized solo exhibitions more than once, and throughout her creative career even managed to sell about 40 paintings.

When the scandal broke, Cecilia was on vacation, and when she returned to Borja, she was unpleasantly surprised. Surprise was replaced by depression. Such close attention to her own person and fierce criticism did not go unnoticed for her - soon there were reports in the press that the woman had depression, she refused to eat and did not want to get out of bed. “If you think that I have sinned by doing this, then I ask your forgiveness ... I ask your forgiveness ...”

Cecilia's life was extremely difficult. She became a widow early and had to raise two disabled children. One of them died, and the other, 60-year-old, lives with her to this day. The woman has always preferred loneliness and led a reclusive lifestyle.

“She went to mass every day and helped in the church, like other women in the village. she was painting simple pictures with flowers and landscapes ... she led a very modest life, ”says one of Cecilia's acquaintances.

“I do not regret that I started the restoration. I regret that I could not finish it to the end, ”says Cecilia herself.

As a result of its restoration, Jesus now looks more like a monkey: the crown of thorns and hair resemble fur, the eyes and nose are deformed, and the mouth is a patch of incomprehensible shape. The result of the work was discovered by the staff of the center for the protection of monuments, who received charitable contribution for the restoration of a fresco from the great-granddaughter of Elias Garcia Martinez.

“I could not imagine that everything would end like this. I didn’t want this,” Cecilia justifies herself. The woman claims that she used only the best paints: “I myself paint my paintings with them.”

The courageous act of a parishioner of the Church of Mercy caused an information storm all over the world. Both journalists and social media did not disregard this initiative of Senora Jimenez.

Some attacked the old woman with the most severe criticism, others defended the elderly Spaniard, calling her the new Goya, Munch and Modigliani in one person.

There was even a petition on change.org in defense of the restored Jesus, which has already received more than 10,000 signatures. The petitioners state the following: “Spanish cultural figures want to remake Elias García Martínez’ radical reworking of the clichéd image of Christ<...>. This is a huge mistake as the new image is a cultural treasure and should be preserved."

The creation of an elderly Spanish woman in just a few hours has become one of the most popular Internet memes. In Madrid, in the San Miguel market, they even made a pancake with an edible image of a fresco restored beyond recognition.

The inhabitants of the town are very grateful to Cecilia for the fact that, thanks to her, their hometown appeared on the world map. "She good man This situation has broken her. We must not forget that Cecilia is an elderly person, and we all advised her to avoid contact with the press. It's normal that she tries to defend herself, but everything ends with her arguing with our priest, with Elias Garcia's family and, as a result, she suffers a lot,” says one of Cecilia's neighbors.

“We should all support her and decided that each of us would bring a flower to Cecilia's garden. In this way, we will express our support for her,” says another.

“I am very grateful to all the residents of Borja. I feel their support and love,” says Cecilia.

The restored fresco attracted to the city big number tourists. Hundreds of curious people lined up at the Temple of Mercy. To avoid damage to the fresco due to the influx of tourists, guards were posted next to it.

Seeing such a hype, the city authorities now want to officially register the Ecce Homo brand and issue all rights.

But at the same time, the city council of the city does not exclude that a criminal case will be opened against the old woman for illegal actions in relation to the object. cultural heritage. However, city officials admit that this situation quite "delicate".

Many government officials also came to Cecilia's defense. “We think she did it with the best of intentions. Next week, she will meet with the restorer and explain what materials she used,” cultural adviser Juan Maria Ojeda told El Pais.

The final decision on the restoration will be made not earlier than in two weeks.