‘A real deviation’: Holy Week poster with half-naked Jesus draws criticism

A poster for Holy Week in Seville in 2024, depicting a half-naked Jesus Christ with his private parts covered only by a cloth, has sparked intense criticism in the Spanish community.

The image of Christ presented on Saturday, according to the author, “young and beautiful,” left no one indifferent. “I don’t understand the controversy, I painted the painting with respect and was surprised by the reaction,” said the artist Salustiano El Pais.

The Spanish Institute for Social Policy spoke out against the poster and called for its immediate removal. “We consider this a serious violation. A real deviation.”

Comments on social media have questioned the sexuality depicted in the work. Critics, after an LGBTQI+ collective called out the drawing, said the figure was not representative of the local Holy Week.

“Salustiano made a drawing that I may more or less like, but personally I find it disrespectful and blasphemous,” said user X.

Meanwhile, a petition has been launched, with over 12,000 signatures, calling for the poster’s immediate removal. “It does not reflect the faith, Christian values, traditions and religious fervor of the city,” the authors say.

Politicians are also divided

The controversy surrounding the Catholic poster has jumped from the realm of social media to the political world. The far-right party VOX was the most critical of the film.

“According to our tradition, the most important rule of sacred art is that it awakens devotion and faith, and not that it serves as a guide for modern ideologies that want to radically change tradition,” a party spokeswoman said at the Seville meeting.

The general secretary of the PSOE in Andalusia criticized the “homophobic” insults made after the poster was unveiled.

“Andalusia belongs to everyone. The homophobic and hateful words in the reviews on the poster are unbearable. Andalusia is about tradition and modernity, but the debate between substance and creative freedom must be respectful,” said Juan Espadas.

Pinto defends himself

The Seville artist said he “thought of painting Jesus prostrate” but changed his mind. “My work has always been on the quieter, more enlightened side of life.”

“I was 12 years old when my brother died. Mom asked me to go into the house where his body was to say goodbye. I was shocked, but when I saw his face and his serene gesture of arms crossed on his chest, I was touched.”

Holy Week, celebrated from March 24 to 31, attracts thousands of tourists to Seville every year. The Catholic holiday celebrates the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.