Inside morille cemetery No flowers or photos. No one comes to clean the inscriptions on Sundays. Also, there is no serious atmosphere. Those who died are commemorated in this small town of Salamanca. It is experienced with so much enthusiasm that the noise in question can even be disturbing to an outside observer.
But what the newcomer does not know is that not corpses are buried here, but literary texts, plastic fragments, audiovisual documents, musical instruments and film sketches and other objects that have little to do with flesh and blood. “It’s crazy, I know,” says founder Domingo Sánchez with his trademark laugh. He held his first funeral 18 years agoBut even today, after more than 200 issues, it continues to amaze as much as it did back then.
The origins of this initiative date back to 2001, when Sánchez joined forces with the late Javier Utray and developed his most ambitious idea: The trigger was the death of thinker Pierre Klossowski. “20 days ago I got in a car and arrived in Paris. While he was still alive, I went to ask for his ashes. It’s funny because when I suggested my other colleagues come with me, they all got upset. They said I didn’t know who I was addressing. I answered them clearly: He is the ‘enfant terrible’ of philosophy, a famous theologian and amateur pornographer. “It had everything in it and, to me, it really intrigued me,” he recalls.
His wife, Denise Morin-Sinclair, was his connecting link. They corresponded for months to decide what to do about her husband’s future. In one of these letters a very strange plan was revealed.
“I offered him Nick Cave danced while performing at his funeral“, he says. Although it seems like a deliberate invention, it is an invitation full of details. According to his statement, guided by his instincts, he went to London to meet the singer. When he arrived there, after greeting her with great courtesy, he immediately rejected the offer. His reasons are unknown, but this refusal did not stop him. Utray, on the other hand, he wanted: Bury the Pontiac Grand Prix They had gone on many walks together in the Prado Museum.
Therefore, when describing this journey to their old friend and mayor of Morille, Manolo Ambrosio, they concluded that the perfect destination to complete their mission was this corner of Campo Charro in Castilian Leon: a mining district with a population of 230. It was especially known in the 1950s.
Neighbors on parade
These were the first two funerals held in the 90,000 square meter area allocated to them by the City Council. That morning in 2005, The vase was carried by a hearse There was a parade of neighbors, family, friends and fans who did not want to miss such an event. In front of the hole is a tombstone with the following inscription: “I need gas so bad, spit things to do with fuel, cars, bodies, speech.”
Hood next to Pontiac It’s in a vault a few feet underground.. “A few years went by with nothing happening, but suddenly interest skyrocketed. Sánchez, who documents and catalogs each of the pieces that lead to a better life, says: Having a waiting list of 200 requests.
Some of the playwright’s manuscripts already lie in the tombs Fernando Arrabalsome poems of the singer German Copinnia bust of the actor Paul NaschyAn image of Ayatollah Khomeini from the journalist Christian Malardseveral rolls of film Buried filmmaker’s Rodrigo Cortesa composer’s piano Juan HidalgoA. yield from the creator Esther Ferrera sculpture by a plastic artist Isidoro Valcárcel and a ball from the football coach Vicente del Bosque.
Works that will never be seen, touched or heard again, unlike those exhibited in museums… “We wanted it to be a project for the future. To do this, we had to tell him the story of a contemporary mausoleum in a country where death is very strict. What was interesting was that all of God became passionate when we were confronted with our doubts. “And step by step, the town embraced it,” he continues.
A dome and many plates
Whoever comes to your door should not expect a tourist attraction. It’s not even a normal cemetery. It’s a piece of land with some informative signage and a newly built dome as the operations center, with only plaques marking the spot where each is located. deceased. From here The real show happens during the ‘graves’.
“Every artist marks them. These are the most important parts, especially for the person who will play the leading role. They can be private or public. It depends on the emotion you want to convey and how you want to formalize it,” says the creator. This strong bond is the reason for the location: To give space to fruits that are experiencing a strong creative process, so that they do not get lost in time.
Therefore, the visitor has to imagine the stories that the rocks currently preserve, as if it were a game. Most likely, you will not understand anything at first. Normal considering the prevailing minimalism. But as you progress along the path, you will begin to realize that there is much more than treasure under your feet. “There is no place like it in the world. “I’m proud that we did it ourselves,” concludes Sánchez, who is writing a book about what it means to run such a big business.
In this cemetery, the content is as artistic as the container: “To be honest, I don’t have any favorites. All the funerals are so intense I barely remember them. I always look forward to them finishing as soon as possible so we can go to the bar. To soften the soul.