We’ve been several times to the Ciutat Fallera to look over the shoulders of Fallas artists as they work. They’ve always been welcoming, but it’s hard to not feel like intruders, distracting them from their work. So, we decided to get in touch with Fallas artist Vicente Domínguez, in advance, and ask if we could stop by his workshop. He happily agreed, and we felt much more at ease, freed to gawk, ask questions and take as many pictures as we wanted, without a sense of guilt.
Vicente Domínguez at work
We had assumed that his workshop would be at the Ciutat Fallera, where most of the artists congregate, but actually Vicente Domínguez is based in the small town of Benimàmet. As we learned later, there are several workshops in this area, as well.
Vincente mostly focuses on the Infantil Fallas Figures (each Fallas group commissions two figures, the main one and a smaller one for the kids). He started with designing and building Fallas figures from a young age, even though his family was not very engaged with the festival. The passion for designing figures became a career, and he moved into the Benimamet workshop about five years ago.
Currently his workshop is bursting with figures — the Covid-19 pandemic has caused the cancellation of two Fallas festivals and the Hogueras of Alicante, for which he also produces pieces. But soon there will be relief. On September 5th, 2021, they’re planning on burning all of the figures which have been piling up. Hopefully, the coronavirus numbers are low enough, that we can watch this once-in-a-lifetime cremà in person!
Talking of the pandemic, as you might imagine, the entire Fallas sector has going through some very rough financial times. If you’d like to help, there’s a website put together by several Fallas artists where can you order your own figure. Check out Regala Un Ninot to purchase an awesome gift!
Now, we invite you to admire Vicente’s work, and watch how a block of Styrofoam is slowly transformed into these beautiful pieces of art. We appreciate them so much, we’d love nothing more than to see them burn in a few weeks!! Fingers crossed!
Please consider to followVicente Domínguez on Instagram
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