TheHoly Week, in the province of Jaén, an event full of tradition and beauty that places the focus of attention on the sculptural and artistic quality of its imagination, and on the majesty and splendor of its steps. In municipalities such as Alcalá la Real, Baeza, Linares, Martos, Jaén, Torredonjimeno or Ubeda these festivities have been declared Tourist interest parties, for the rich and diverse legacy that they assume for the cultural heritage of the province through its co-fradies and hermandades. Holy Week is, in this sense, one of the most splendid moments for all the modalities and forms of Sacred Art.

Every year and prior to this date the workshops of sculptors, wood tallists, embroidery, candles or restoration are filled with orders and works for the development of all the works and materials required by religious worship. The province of Jaén has a large number of artisans whose work has become a quality distinctive for the entire Spanish geography. Traditional offices that have joined the cart of new technologies to gain in sustainability and productivity, and to continue to offer the best quality.

This Holy Week lives the parties in a different way and travels through the municipalities of Andújar, Baeza, Ubeda and Arjonilla to know the history of some of these artisans, and how these old trades combine tradition and modernity to achieve the maximum artistic expression.

Jaén, land of craftsmen

Bellido wax is a company with large family roots located in Stir specialized in the production of candles and cherry. For more than 120 years this company has kept almost intact its traditional way of working wax, using virgin wax extracted from bee hives and without applying chemical methods in its production, thus preserving all its natural properties at 100%. In addition, this group of artisans continues to whiten these waxes into the sun during the summer months, making the whole process natural and maintaining a historical tradition. These qualities have made it a national reference centre for the cherry industry. They are currently working with churches, convents, cathedrals and hermandades from all over Spain.

Also in Stir, the sculptor Manuel López Pérez It has a workshop where it does important work at the national level for temples, churches, hermandades and co-fradies, as well as numerous civil works. In this workshop, declared Point of Interest of the Board of Andalusia, the artist works stone, bronze, wood, iron and other materials to experiment with a multitude of artistic possibilities. The Risen of Angijar, the Risen Christ of Burgos or the main altar of the S.I. Cathedral of Jaén are some of his works.

José Luis Ojeda, on the other hand, is a restoration of works of art with more than 25 years of experience and established in Stir. With a successful and well-known professional career, he has been responsible for the restoration of numerous works of great artistic and religious value, many of them internationally known, such as the San Dimas Talla, of Neapolitan origin and of the 18th century, the Roman sculpture Thoracata, of the Archaeological Museum of Montoro, or the stone cover of the Abacial Church of the Fortress of the Mota, in Alcalá la Real. This artist is deeply aware of the value of the artistic and historical heritage and the importance of its restoration.

Another place of great interest for the crafts in this municipality is the Hairdresser Chapel, an artisan and family workshop founded in 1934 and dedicated to the retail trade of jewelry and watch. Since the incorporation of José Ángel Molina, the company has experienced a great process of regeneration of the hand of this expert goldsmith and restorer. His work, completely artisan, is based on the art of goldsmiths, offering his service to all types of customers at the national level. Among his most valued works are crowns, peanas, chalices, trays, mirrors, copos, scepters, banners, medals, badges, palos... José Ángel also works to restore pieces of the historical artistic heritage of the province of Jaén in works of goldsmiths from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.

The Workshop of Bordado de Pedro Palenciano, also Stir, is another point of interest in the map of artisans of the province. Palenciano was raised within a well-known family of artisans and specializes in the design and production of embroidery in gold and silver. A trade that dates back to the 12th century and that it does with the same techniques. This artist has worked with co-fradies from all over Andalusia and at the national and international levels (South America, Italy, Malta and the Philippines). In the production of his works he uses a wide variety of raw materials and tools in which the presence of gold and the use of fabrics with a high aesthetic value can be highlighted. Another facet of this workshop is the realization of all kinds of designs for processing beings, such as design and projects of steps or different pieces of goldsmiths or wood size.

Continuing the journey through this map of traditional artisans of the province the next stop is in Ubedawhere the family business Ubediis Crafts And it is four generations dedicated to working the spartum, its production being totally ecological and adapted to current trends. A workshop that adds to tradition and modernity and has been worthy of numerous awards and distinctions for the work it does, by hand, with this vegetable fiber. This workshop is especially linked to the Holy Week and to the world in the production of jute belts, Spartas and other works.

The embroidery Manuel Lozano Pozo, in Baeza, is another of the great traditional artisans who treasure the province. Especially linked to the world of co-frade, this artist began his formation in Seville and continues to learn new techniques and keep the production 100% artisan in its embroidery of silver, gold and silk. In his professional performance, many tunics, berries and garments for sacred images, pallet, baccalas, bands or banners of cofradies and hermandades stand out.

In ArjonillaThe tallist. Juan Carlos García is more than known by the lucid religious expression of his works. And by its personal, very characteristic and differentiating artistic seal, under the inspiration of artists such as Borromini, Grinling Gibbons, Serlio, Palladio, Andrea Pozzo or Bernini. Among its wide and diverse repertoire are works such as the Processional Pass of the Risen Christ Brotherhood in Torredelfield, or the Paso de la Column de la Hermandad Jesus Nazarene de Alcaudete.

This set of artisans, and many more, are an essential part to maintain the artistic and cultural heritage of the provinceand to value various forms of artistic expressions rooted in the Jiennese traditions.

Click here for information about the province's crafts.