Nov 25, 2009

Photo Essay: A brief tour of Cementiri del Sud-Oest on Montjuïc

Extending down the south side of Montjuïc hill in Barcelona lies one of Europe's most beautiful and haunting cities of the dead. Opened since 1883, Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc is a quiet treasure trove for poignant sculptures with hauntingly realistic expressions of sorrow and grief.

I have always loved visiting cemeteries because these places often reveal the soul of a people - their fear of death and the mythologies they construction to ease these fears and console themselves over the loss of their loved ones. This cemetery, in particular, has some of the most beautiful, moving and lovingly carved sculptures I've seen anywhere.
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
Cementiri del Sud-Oest Montjuïc
All photos by me.

This cemetery is best known for the many famous Catalan artists and politicians who are buried here, like the artist Joan Miró, dancer Carmen Amaya and poet/priest Jacint Verdaguer and Generalitat presidents Lluis Companys and Francesc Macià. There are also many victims of the Spanish Civil War who are buried in unmarked graves here and a memorial park that commemorates them.

11 comments:

Te said...

Gorgeous photos. I usually love cemeteries also, but I think I'd be a little scared walking around there. Some of those figures are..eerie..

Shehani said...

Thanks Te! umm.. i didn't find it eerie... It was really peaceful and haunting but not in a scary way... but then again, maybe i'm just a weirdo like that :) ...and i suppose that sculpture of death with his hand on the mustachioed dude's shoulder is a bit unsettling...

sirio said...

but they are indeed beautiful.

AngelaCorrias said...

Oh my, that was creepy... The sculpture with the baby is meant to be the son climbing on her dead mother? Are the sculptures actual graves or they just decorate the cemeterY

Sorry all those questions but they really impressed me...

Te said...

What about the baby (with the creepy adult face) climbing up onto its dead Mother?

Have you been to the cemetery in Montamarte? I know it's famous and everyone knows its name but I don't, to me it's just 'that cemetery in Montamarte'. I wandered in there one day by accident and got totally lost, the sun was setting and we couldn't find our way out. Potentially a horror film. I am so so annoyed with my then 18 year old self for not realising it is where all those special (I couldn't think of a better adjective than 'special' ..famous, talented..I sound like a douche) people are buried.

Oh, and from what I remember from my 7 weeks in Madrid is that your suburb is like the 'ghetto'..and by ghetto I mean rough areas as opposed to 'where all the jews live'. I Will definitely explore it, but I will have my extremely blonde friend with me, shall I expect attempts to steal her from slave traders?

Shehani said...

@ sirio I think so too :)

@angela. yes, they were actual graves and yes the creeping baby was climbing on his dead mama..so sad.

@te. yes, the creeping baby is creepy but so evocatively sorrowful too. I haven't been to the montmarte cemetery, I wanted to but was told by a local that it wasn't as special as the one in barcelona and paris offers better sites for my short visit. So next time.. And as for mi barrio, you'll be surprised at how guay, multicultural and bohemian it is here when you finally come on the hill. Not 'rough' just ethnic.

AngelaCorrias said...

So if they are actual graves, are the sculptures made to represent the life of the dead they are made for? In a nutshell, did that woman actually die so young and had a so small baby?

Shehani said...

Yes, Angela, I believe so... but I can't be sure. It's not something you can ask. I hope you didn't find this post shocking in a bad way... I think these types of emotive and personal sculptures speak to our universal narratives of fear, loss, grief and healing. I want you to know that I wasn't trying to be exploitive, I only wanted to show the quiet, unsung beauty of this sacred space.

AngelaCorrias said...

Oh, no no! I was shocked just because tragic stories always shock me!
In Italy on the 1st of November, instead of celebrating Halloween we go to the cemeteries to visit our dead, and even if I know the cemetery of my town, I'm always upset when I see graves of young people, but I think that's a normal feeling.
Your post is great, in London they even organise tourist trips in graveyards, and why not, some are very artistic, and visiting them doesn't mean being disrespectful!

Te said...

Sorry to be such a comment stalker, but I'm spending NYE in Madrid this year and I was wondering if you have spent a NYE there yet and if you have any tips...

Shehani said...

@Angela, yeah they have the same tradition here in Spain on Nov 1st.
While on the topic to graveyard tours, when I was in New Orleans, preflood, I went on a guided voodoo tour of the old cemetery and the tour was full of tales of hexes, high priestesses and stolen bones. I loved it! I love the varied stories of people's lives.

@Te, well, as you might know, Spanish people hang out with their families and eat grapes at midnight on NYE so i suggest you find a fun hostel and make friends. If you don't mind crowds then Sol at midnight might delight... it's a big party that spills in and out of the bars until dawn so definitely have a long siesta before. My NYEs in Madrid have been quiet affairs with a few friends so I'm probably not the best source for where the party's at... but i have heard 1st hand stories...

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