Jesús Manuel Romero Hernández

Multimedia sculptor

©Jesús Romero

Sculptures for religious art

Jesús discovered his vocation as a teenager
He likes to transmit feelings in his sculptures
Seville has influenced his work

Religious figures and statues are a hallmark of Sevillian craftsmanship. In Castilblanco de Los Arroyos, Jesús Manuel Romero Hernández is a specialist in modelling religious figures out of clay. In his teenage years, Jesús realised that he wanted to dedicate himself to this craft, and he became a master in gilding and artistic polychromy, as well as in sculpture and carving. When he started out, he simply worked at a table in his family home, but later this transformed to become his definitive workshop. "In 2010 when I returned from Italy, I settled here, although I had been receiving commissions since 2007," he says. "My first blessed work was a terracotta image of St. Benedict Abbot bishop."

Interview

©Jesús Romero

©Jesús Romero

What do you enjoy most about your work?: I enjoy that my pieces convey such personal feelings as joy, nostalgia, or melancholy. That is where the most special and unique part of my work lies. Provoking emotions is what I like the most.
Do you have suggestions for a young artisan who is just starting out?: I would tell them to study, to observe, to try and not stop trying. I would also encourage them to create in many disciplines – drawing, modelling, or carving, and to be influenced by those who have gone before us and done good work.
What is a memorable moment in your professional life?: I like to see the faces of the school children who visit the workshop. When they see me in the street afterwards they recognise me. I have also found stamps and photographs of my works on hospital beds, to which people pray to be cured of their illnesses.
How does Seville influence your work?: Seville is the cradle of the Spanish baroque. It has produced the masters who have written the history of the city's art with their works. My main line of work is 'arte sacro' (sacred art), which links me to Sevillian baroque.

Jesús Manuel Romero Hernández is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2008