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Date Published: 27/04/2023
ARCHIVED - Statue mocking disgraced ex-king of Spain appears in Madrid square
The sculpture pokes fun at the former monarch of Spain’s “fondness for hunting endangered animals”
A sculpture of King Emeritus Juan Carlos I, disgraced former monarch of Spain, has appeared in the centre of Madrid’s famous Puerto del Sol, causing much controversy and more than a little amusement. The statue, which was surreptitiously placed in the square while police weren’t looking, has Juan Carlos pointing a hunting rifle at the emblematic bear and strawberry tree monument, an image which reflects the official crest of the city.
Measuring 1.70 centimetres high, the statue, which lasted only about 10 minutes before it was removed, was created by Chilean artist Nicolás Miranda. The effigy appeared just hours after the emeritus king left Spain after a flying visit to participate in a regatta.
The artist explained that many people associate Juan Carols with “a luxurious private life and with his fondness for hunting endangered animals such as bison, elephants and bears.” The artwork, he added, is fully intended to “ridicule the figure of the monarch” and has thus been christened by its creator 'Parasitic strategies for survival in a cruel world'.
The placement of the parody is significant: in just one example of the events of a scandal-filled life, the ex-king, who abdicated in 2014 in favour of his son Felipe, was accused of shooting a tame bear that had been fed copious amounts of vodka during a trip to Russia in 2006. The Royal Family always strenuously denied this claim.
A little more difficult to deny is the controversy he stirred up in 2012 when he was photographed in front of a dead elephant during a hunting trip to Botswana. With Spain deep in recession at the time, the country was scandalised that he had jetted off on an extravagant safari.
The sculpture has now been moved from Puerto del Sol since it was placed there without permission from the Madrid City Council.
However, those who want to see the work can do so in the exhibition that the artist is running in the cultural centre La Parcería, in Arganzuela.
Images: Nicolás Miranda on Instagram
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