The César Manrique Foundation has announced that the patron saint festivities of the Villa de Arafo in Tenerife, which will be held between July 29 and August 31, will be dedicated this year to the Lanzarote artist César Manrique.
The City Council, presided over by Juan Ramón Martín, wanted to pay tribute to the artist, whose legacy "exalts the harmonious relationship between art and nature, while claiming the care of the natural and cultural heritage of the Islands and the planet," he emphasizes.
Within the program of festivities, the exhibition "César Manrique. Life, art and nature" stands out, which can be visited between August 22 and 31, while on the 23rd a guided tour will be offered. Located on the ground floor of the Juan Carlos I Auditorium, the exhibition proposes an approach to Manrique's life and work, through panels with images and texts, which not only focus on his pictorial work, but also include aspects of his public and sculptural work.
In addition, on August 23, the "Atlantic Fauna" Workshop will be held, coordinated by the head of the FCM Pedagogical Department, Alfredo Díaz, in which girls and boys of any age can participate and which will culminate with the exhibition of the works carried out.
The next day the documentary "Taro. El eco de Manrique" will be screened, which will feature a subsequent colloquium in which the director of the film, Miguel G. Morales, will participate. Several reproductions of the "Flags of the Cosmos", designed by Manrique for the inauguration of the Roque de Los Muchachos Observatory in La Palma, will also be placed on Reverendo Párroco Don Vicente Jorge Dorta Street, one of the main streets of the town.
Finally, the candidates for queen and romera of the festivities will also show them during the gala on a stage decorated with Manrique motifs. For its part, the FCM trusts that the artist's work and ideas "constitute a stimulus to face the challenges posed by the present and future in the best way":
