Feria posters are big business in Spain. People collect them, they’re massive, gaudy and usually designed by members of the public in big competitions.
Which is plagiarism is rife in the industry, and people love trying to catch copycats. It’s so much easier to photocopy some other poster, change the name of the town, and see if you win the €500 (or whatever).
Usually, when such a theft is found, a ritual humiliation of the other town is carried out, and everyone in the ripped off town feels smug for a few days. It’s sort of like winning the lotto, only without the cash – just the glory.
Huercal Overa got caught this year pinching the semana santa poster from the town of Jerez, which caused a few red faces.
This time it’s a town called Bornos in Cadiz, which has ripped off the 2011 Almeria poster.
I looked up the feria announcement of Bornos on their webpage, and they start off with the exciting news of their special invited guests of honour Mickey y Minnie Mouse, Boj Sponja y Pepa Pig. Who’s Boj Sponja? Ah, Bob spongepants! That sponge who lives under the sea. Nice of him to come all the way to Bornos to open the feria. The cost of the flights is probably why they couldn’t afford their own illustrator….