The monumental sculptures of Jiménez Deredia show 'El Viaje de la Vida' on Paseo de Poniente in Benidorm

Charm, Lullaby, Refuge, Consciousness, Dream and Twilight are the names of the six monumental sculptures by the Costa Rican artist Jorge Enrique Jiménez Deredia that from this Thursday can be visited on Paseo de Poniente in Benidorm. The exhibition, encompassed under the name 'The Journey of Life' and composed of six large sculptures made of marble and bronze, has been inaugurated by the mayor of the city, Toni Pérez, and by the artist himself, who has guided the attendees throughout a journey that has added participants, attracted by the beauty of the works and the possibility of listening first-hand to the explanations of its creator.

The exhibition, promoted by the Department of Historical and Cultural Heritage of the Benidorm City Council, directed by Ana Pellicer, comes to the city as a result of the collaboration with the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències, where it was already exhibited in 2015 and after passing through the streets of cities like Florence, Rome, Mexico City, Shanghai or Miami. “And now Benidorm is another stage of this 'Journey of Life'”, as highlighted by Jiménez Deredia, who is also the first Latin American sculptor to have work in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, inside a niche designed by Michelangelo Buonarroti between 1544 and 1564.

Toni Pérez has stated that for Benidorm “it is a pride to enjoy” this collection again “in a space like this Paseo de Poniente, converted into an authentic open-air museum.” Likewise, the first mayor recalled that we are facing "another wonderful exhibition, street culture and of a very high level", in what he described as "a great exhibition hall from Benidorm to the world."

“The cultural event in the street, in this case with monumental sculpture, means that at any time of the day, in a city like this where spend their time walking in the street, you come across a work of art of incalculable value, you can talk to her and establish your connection,” the mayor declared. Likewise, he has reflected on his work to point out that “his entire story is also the story of Benidorm: the sea and the importance that water has for us; the ships; the journey of life itself, and all of it in the open air", considering that the place where they are exhibited is "the ideal setting because there is also a dialogue between the sea and the land and those profiles of our Serra Gelada or our horizon and the island, which combine very well with what Jiménez Deredia wants to convey to us with his work in Benidorm.”

Finally, the mayor has expressed his conviction that “thousands of people will enjoy” this exhibition, which will be in the city until March 2025 and has expressed his gratitude to both the artist and the director of Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències, Miriam Atienza, for having chosen Benidorm to host this “magnificent work”.

A stage of his journey around the world

For his part, Jorge Jiménez Deredia has stated that the possibility of exhibiting his work on the street allows the general public, "regardless of their economic and social condition, to have contact and relationship with these sculptures." For this reason, he considered that, after visiting some of the most important cities in the world, “the possibility arose of bringing the sculptures to this city, they told us about the extraordinary landscape that Benidorm had and these landscapes as special as the sea, the mountains, the island behind. "And we came to see it, we loved the energy, what made us decide that this could be a good stage for this exhibition."

As for the exhibition itself, it is made up of six large-format sculptures, black and white and sculpted in marble and bronze, respectively, each weighing between 6 and 7 tons. All of them make up a collection of symbolic sculptures, where sphericity is the fundamental element because “it is linked to life, to the human being, and to the reasoning that we are making a journey, which is the journey of life, from the meaning of the cosmic participation of our existence: we are a grain of sand in the immensity of the universe but the universe needs us because we are part of it,” the artist explained.

All the pieces have a QR code that will allow the viewer to scan it with their mobile phone, which will take them to a page where they can obtain all the information about each of the sculptures, the collection and the artist himself. “Everything you could get in a museum, but outdoors, without having to pay a ticket and enjoying the landscape at the same time,” according to Jiménez Deredia.

For her part, the content director of the City of Arts and Sciences, Miriam Atienza, highlighted that the open-air museum project developed by Benidorm City Council “fits very well with the work we have been doing for years bringing culture to the streets because we understand that not everyone enters museums and it is a way to bring each person closer and enjoy art. In addition, she has valued that the city “has outdoor exhibition spaces that are magnificent.”

On this point, the councillor for Historical and Cultural Heritage, Ana Pellicer, recalled the “close and fruitful relationship” that unites Benidorm with this institution, which “has translated into the presence in our city of exhibitions by international artists such as Arne Quinze, as well as national authors such as Cristóbal Gabarrón.”