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Church masterpiece 'restored' as Mr. Bean would do it
The efforts of an elderly parishioner to restore a 120-year-old fresco on a column inside a Spanish church have some wondering if a Mr. Bean movie was the inspiration for the effort.
The fresco, titled Ecce Homo (Behold the Man), is a depiction of Jesus Christ with a crown of thorns. It was painted on a wall of the Sanctuary of Mercy at Borja, near Zaragoza, Spain, by artist Elias Garcia Martinez more than a century ago.
Its troubling "restoration" occurred after the local Center for Borja Studies received the donation of a canvas done by Garcia from one his granddaughters who lives nearby, according to the center's blog.
Center staff noted that the only other known work by Garcia in the area was Ecce Homo, went to the church to photograph the fresco, and realized it was in bad shape.
Parishioner Cecilia Giménez said she was asked by the church to fix things up.
“The priest was aware … he knew,” she is quoted as saying in a report on Euronews.com. “Of course I did it because I was told to do it."
In its blog, the center expresses "astonishment" that "an intervention was done" on the painting.
"As unbelievable as it sounds, this is what remains of the work of an artist whose relatives still live in our city," the blog reads.
Giménez said her work was done in the open and nobody tried to stop her, according to Euronews.
"Everybody that came into the church saw me. I never tried to hide,” she is quoted as saying.
"Clearly, she has destroyed the painting," Garcia's granddaughter, Teresa Garcia, is quoted as saying.
The center says it doesn't know if the "restoration" can be fixed.
"We don’t know if this indescribable act has a solution, but there is no doubt that someone should adopt strict measures so that there is not a repetition of acts like this, which despite its intentions, should be strongly condemned," its blog says.
But in reader comments on the blog, some wonder whether the "restoration" is a repetition of a previous act, one from the 1997 Rowan Atkinson film "Bean."
“Something similar happened in the movie Mr. Bean. … It probably inspired whoever did this,” one commenter writes.
In the movie, Mr. Bean accidentally sneezes on the masterpiece "Whistler's Mother" and attempts a crude repair.
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The Ecce Homo "restoration" is arguably better than Bean's line drawing, and that might be just as well, because there's doubt that Ecce Homo can be returned to its original splendor. And at least one commenter on the blog sees a silver lining.
"I think that the city of Borja should conserve the painting in its current state," the person writes. "It could become a tourist attraction for the town.”
On Twitter
That's restored huh? ....hmm, interesting.
It looks exactly like MY Jesus.
No god given talent there ;(
And without godly qualities....
That's the best restoration in Art history. You're never old to be famous.
It was God's will to deface what looks like a 1st century WANTED poster of His son.
Now everyone will be looking for a howler monkey.
LMAO! Funny stuff there.
That is one of the funniest responses I've ever read. Thanks for the good belly laugh.
Outstanding!
I think she did a fine job.
Maybe that's Jesus REALLY looked like. We don't know. we weren't there.
I think it looks like an Ewok.
my basement needs painting. anyone have her number?
...hey...one picture of Jesus is just as good as another....what's the problem?
With the right connections, I'm sure the "restorer" could show in NY.
I am hoping this is some kind of hoax...wow...
This is what happens when you DON'T use Angies List!!!! haha
I like her new rendition. It looks just like MY Jesus. No kidding. She captured him perfectly. Bravo Cecelia! She should restore ALL pictures of Jesus.
That is NOT the original painting! Not one of the markings from the original are remotely close the "restoration" painting....from his crown of thorns, to the direction of his eyes.
For whatever the reason, someone is trying to pull a fast one! I would start with a call to the local authorities and an expert that can verify the authenticity.
.
It's a mural on a wall, one hell of a bate and switch pam.
Looks like the same painting, it's just touched/painted over by someone with NO artistic ability what-so-ever. Why didn't the church hire a professional? Now this work of art is nothing but a joke and the person who did this has no business in art.
Believe it or not it is the real deal. I happen to be a Spaniard myself and at first I thought it was some sort of internet prank until I paid attention to the local news. A proper restoration by a group of experts was actually in talks, but this 80 year old parishioner -unaware of this- just took matters into her hands and voila! It's being said that this was done in a couple of hours and the priest denies knowing of it. Authorities are reporting that she turned herself in saying she just wanted to retouch the parts were the paint was missing but that quote "things got out of hand". Since nobody stopped her she thought it was ok. I guess she got carried away and the result...unbelievable to say the least.
she definitely has confident in her ability. maybe she is related to Picaso....4th generation maybe?
so not funny