Events May, 21st 2010 by John Grimmett

Marbella Fair kicks off June 7th with a rich history

Marbella Fair, to be held from to June 7th to 13th, is warming up with a retrospective on the fair’s history. The exhibit, ‘Memories of the Fair’, at the headquarters of the district council on Salinas Street, delves into its past through pictures dating back to 1948.

But photographs are not the only mementos in this emotional collection. Also on display are the crowns and costumes of all the homecoming queens, as well as fans that until now served the visitors as relief from high temperatures.

One thing these items demonstrate is that some things never change — and not only the climate. Fair signs and old images show that we are hooked to the past, to its feelings of joy and passion, to our need to belong to a tradition, remaining tireless in time. It is not the first time that all these elements have been presented, but their numbers have impressed even the fair’s organisers. Ten panels display some 5,000 photographs adorned with crowns, costumes and bands.

‘Illusions, of course, come from finding images with people who are no longer in this world, even with ancestors who had much to do with local festivities’, Rosario Quijano, a resident of the city centre, said in reflection. Indeed, she is the granddaughter of a man in one of the photos shown holding something like a stereo while setting up an exhibit. ‘How time has passed, well, rather, how we passed through time, because time is always the same’, she said, consoling herself with her daughter.

‘All this goes to show that what is important is for people to recover their origins, that is very good’, Rafael Posada said. Posada left Marbella years ago because of work, but he has now returned. At the other end of the room, Carmen Morales stands in a photograph next to the dress she wore when she was elected queen of festivities of 1957.

Santos Pedrazuela, Central District counsellor for festivities, explained that with this exhibition, the Council aims to revitalise down-town through historic culture. ‘In particular, with retrospective exhibitions, those who visit can look forward to memories’, he said.

The exhibit will remain open until June 10, daily from 09:00 to 14:00.