Raices de Ronda
– Roots Of Ronda

by Rachel Brookes Finlay

When we first met Chico in his shop in Ronda, totally by chance, we were wandering around a Medieval Fair which went straight past his little shop, and got intrigued by the carved comical faces sculpted into gnarled pieces of wood which were on the street.

Chico was just in the doorway, carving away on a new piece as we were looking around at the pieces on display within the shop. We were a little unsure whether to pick each piece up, but he came and told us to please touch and pick up the carvings as you never know where you will find another face carved into the wood. He was so enthusiastic about the carvings and also very happy and surprised how many people come into his shop and leave with a smile just after looking at his creations.

We were very lucky to be the first people other than family members to visit this magical place. The land is the property of his father-in-law, and over the last four years Chico has been carving magical faces into the living trees. The first tree we saw was a eucalyptus, which had four huge faces carved into it. He explained that as the tree’s roots were becoming a problem with the foundations of the pool and the tree would probably have to be cut down, he decided to see what effect carving would have on the tree.

Chico explained that his inspiration is in the natural form of the tree. He creates the first part of the art and the tree does the rest.

He was initially artistically trained in the human form and studied under Ricardo Davila. What he discovered was he did not agree that the human face should have to be symmetrical; he preferred to create faces with comic features and character. And if one eye was lower than the other, it was ok.

Though he normally would never carve so much on one tree, the surprise result was that the tree re-grew around the carvings and carries on living today as healthy as ever, and seems to be on reprieve.

His preferred tree to carve is the olive tree. The reasons he gave are that they are not protected—there are many trees that are protected in Spain—and also that the olive tree naturally lends itself to the magical carvings due to its gnarled roots and twisting trunks.

Chico is quite happy to carve on anything —well, anything that is natural: stone, wood and even avocado stones! We didn’t see any of these items, but for me the trees seem a wonderful canvas for his art.

He started carving the root area of the trees and moved on to the trunks to great effect. It was a wonderful experience to walk around the trees, finding the sometimes smiling, sometimes laughing, and the odd sad face. As Chico explained, it all depends on his mood when he is carving the faces.

He told us that he had two dreams: the first one which he had already fulfilled was to be able to work with something he loved.

The second is to get involved with a Town Hall and be granted at least a hundred olive trees, which he would then carve and invite school children to see and play around, to appreciate the art and natural environment —as well as anyone else who would like to see them; where the trees are now is a family home, but it would be wonderful to share this experience with more people.

It is quite surprising to find out that Chico has only been carving for the last four years, and has only had his shop open for a year and a half. He has already made such an impact on the area. The last time we went to visit his shop he was waiting for a national Spanish TV station to come and interview him.

It is even more important in these times of doom and gloom to find people like Chico who are creating magic for everyone to see and touch, and spreading smiles around. To see him filled with passion for what he is creating is a wonderful thing. And long may it continue.

P.S.: No trees were harmed in the making of the sculptures!

photography by Tracy Marshall