This morning, the design of the Devil “Subimos los precios” was presented, winner of the twenty-fifth contest Créma’l tú!, Badalona Devil Design Award. This is the figure of the Devil that will be planted on the Fishermen’s beach, in front of the Paseo de la Rambla, during all the May Festivals and that will be burned on the night of Sant Anastasi, on Friday, May 10.
The chosen design is called “We raise prices”, a demon that reflects, in all its rounded forms, a criticism of inflation, the generalized and unchecked increase in shopping basket prices. The face of this year’s Demon reflects, scribbled and soaked in sweat, fear or even panic, when seeing the figures that reflect the supermarket shopping receipts, illustrated in a very eloquent way with one of the products that has most uploaded: the olive oil, with two almost empty jugs at the foot of his figure.
“We raise the prices” is the work of Cristian Jerónimo Reina, from Mataroni by birth, very closely linked to Badalona since he studied, from 2008 to 2014, at the Higher School of Design and Plastic Arts. Furthermore, his first job as a designer was in a communication agency in Badalona. He currently works at a creative agency in Barcelona.
The 25th edition of the Badalona May Festival Demon Design Award had the participation of 114 people. The presentation event took place in the press room of the Badalona City Council with the presence of the mayor of Badalona, ??Xavier Garcia Albiol; the second deputy mayor and councilor for the Area of ??Economic and City Promotion, Work, Culture, Citizenship and Government, Cristina Agüera; from the Councilor for the Culture Area, Vanesa González, and from the winner of the design of the Demoni de Badalona.
The mayor, Xavier Garcia Albiol, congratulated the author and highlighted that “any resident of Badalona, ??no matter how old they are, can feel represented by this year’s Demon, because everyone has to go shopping.” The mayor explained that the winning figure perfectly combines the protest aspect and sympathy. “He is a demon who looks scared at how prices have risen, but at the same time he is endearing, friendly, scary, and the little ones will like that,” the mayor said. On the other hand, Garcia Albiol has pointed out that with the presentation of the demon the countdown to the May Festival begins and that the government’s will for this year is to “make special emphasis on ensuring that the festivities reach all the neighborhoods of the city.” .
The author of the design, Cristian Jerónimo, has explained that with his Demon he wants to reach all audiences. “For me it is important that children find it fun and comical, but that at the same time adults capture the critical spirit with the current situation of rising consumer prices, which is exemplified by oil bottles,” indicated the artist. “I hope everyone likes it and represents the spirit of the May Festival,” added Jerónimo.
