Spanish-born Parishioner Who Found Notoriety for Mishandling a Famous Painting Repair Has Died at the Age of 94
The elderly woman from Spain who achieved global fame for her poorly executed repair job on a cherished religious painting has died at the age 94.
Cecilia Giménez, from the town of Borja in northeast Spain, rose to prominence 13 years ago after she undertook to restore a century-old fresco titled Ecce Homo located in her local church.
Giménez's handiwork spread across the internet and earned the moniker "Potato Jesus", because the resulting likeness of Christ's head bearing a resemblance to a hairy monkey.
Official Announcement and Homage
The nonagenarian's passing was confirmed by Borja's mayor, Eduardo Arilla, in a social media post, where he acknowledged her as a "passionate lover of painting from a young age".
"Rest in peace Cecilia, your memory will live on with us," Arilla wrote.
Arilla also paid tribute to Giménez's "famous restoration of Ecce Homo" in the summer of 2012, which "because of the deteriorated condition it presented, Cecilia, acting in good faith, chose to apply new paint over the original".
The Artwork's Background and the Fateful Intervention
The Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man" in Latin) by 19th century painter Elias Garcia Martinez had been held for over a century in the Sanctuary of Mercy Church near Zaragoza.
In 2012, Giménez, then 81, stated that church members had "always repaired everything here", and that she had been given the go-ahead from the local priest to proceed.
She added at the time that anybody who came into the church would have seen she was painting over the original artwork.
An Unexpected Economic Lifeline
The impact of the repaint job spawned the "Monkey Christ" internet phenomenon and saw the once quiet town of Borja rapidly turn into a significant visitor attraction.
The municipality, which had in the past welcomed just 5,000 visitors per year, attracted more than 40,000 tourists by 2013, and managed to raise more than €50,000 for charity from the attention.
Currently, local authorities estimate that between 15,000 and 20,000 tourists travel to Borja every year to see the notorious painting, which is now protected by a protective shield of glass.
Later Life and Local Admiration
After recovering from the initial backlash, with support from local residents and well-wishers around the world, Giménez went on to hold an exhibition of her paintings featuring twenty-eight of her own paintings.
She was commended by the mayor for her generosity and years of faithful service to the parish.
Ultimately, what began as a sincere but flawed art repair created an unlikely piece of pop culture and provided unprecedented tourist revenue to a humble Spanish town.
