Spanish Nativity

Thanksgiving at Mepkin 2008

Once again, Mepkin Abbey, the Trappist abbey located in Monck's Corners, South Carolina, hosted its Thanksgiving weekend Nativity figure exhibit.  The monastery is going through some changes after giving up on its long-running egg business because of an intensive campaign mounted against it by PETA.  Now the monks are thinking of going into mushroom raising, possibly in addition to running a native plant nursery.  In any case, these changes didn't affect the Nativity scene exhibit, which was held as usual in the monastery's Clare Booth Luce Library.

 

The figures shown this year belonged to the collection of Betty Morris, a member of Friends of the Creche, who lives in Virginia.  There were some 40 figures and scenes on display, most of them from her collection.  She collects figures from all over the world, and also had a number of American scenes, such as this grouping of 17cm resin figures made by Hestia, a Massachusetts company.

 

As usual, visitors got to vote for their 2 favorites. The scene that gets the most votes will be shown again next year. I liked this two-foot high cupboard-like triptych from Oaxaca, Mexico.

 

The scene that reappeared from last year was a large scene with 40 cm copper figures, made by Mary Eldredge of Vermont.  This year she has added a shepherd and sheep.

 

When I peered over the shoulder of the volunteer who was tallying the votes, it looked to me as if it would probably win again and return next year!  But I still voted for my favorite Oaxacan scene, probably just because of this little row of sheep at the bottom.

Vatican Nativity 2008

According to CNS (Catholic News Service), preparations are beginning for this year's large Nativity Scene in front of St. Peter's Basilica.  Last year, the scene was set in Bethlehem, in a delapidated stable. This year?  To be announced...in any case, here's a photo from CNS of workmen assembling the large, usually life-size scene.

 

What lies behind the fence?  What will it be this year?

Belén Bancaja

Here's a little video treat. Spain has a style of belén known as the "belén monumental," meaning, essentially, a huge Belén. Probably the biggest of the big is the "Belén Bancaja," also known as the Belén Más Grande del Mundo, the World's Biggest Belén.

It was first set up in Valencia in 1996, and since then has become an itinerant exhibition that makes the rounds of the Spanish peninsula, being set up in one or another of Spain's major cities for the duration of the Christmas season. This year it is in Tarragona. Fourteen trailer trucks were required to transport it.

It is sponsored by a Spanish bank, Bancaja, and the employees of the bank often assist with the Belén.  The bank maintains a website on the work it does as a sponsor of the arts, and there is a detailed description of the belén on the site.

There are more than 1,200 figures, most by the Madrid figurista José Luis Mayo. The scenes provide richly detailed glimpses of life in Roman-occupied Judea, along with a side trip to exotic Egypt. I saw the Belén Bancaja in Madrid about 3 years ago. I stood on line for nearly 2 hours on a freezing morning in a shopping center in Madrid, but it was certainly worth the wait. The Belén is spectacular and it takes a long time to examine all of its details.

You can take a peek at it here. This video is on Bancaja's web site and provides you with a half-hour tour of the scene, without having to wait outside on a chilly Madrid morning…

Nació en Belén (Born in Bethlehem)

Once again, Benito Santivanez, who never sleeps, has found something interesting for US belenistas. Scrolling through the very interesting Foro de Belenismo, he found a new TV program from Spain, Nació en Belén (Born in Bethlehem). It is on Lebrija TV, a local channel in Lebrija, a small city in Andalucía. The program is hosted by three young men, Jose Antonio Monge, David Caro, and Rafa Bustos. They discuss belén techniques and demonstrate construction details, show videos made by themselves and others of different Spanish Nativity scenes, and present a very interesting show. To access it, go to Lebrija Television and click on the link for Nació en Belén at left, under Ya Puedes Ver (Now You Can Watch). The show will be broadcast Saturday nights at 9:00 p.m. Spanish time, which is 3:00 p.m. Eastern US time. However, it goes on the station's website afterwards and you can access that week's show from the website.

Also, of course, don't forget Cristóbal Jiménez' great radio program, Camino de Belén. Last week we heard a great interview with the fine people from Casa Lara in Madrid, and this week we heard, among other things, about a Belén made of sand in Guadalajara. The program has gone back to its weekly schedule now that Christmas is approaching, and can be heard on on the Radio RK20 website on Thursdays at 1:00 pm Eastern US time. Don't miss it!