The Festival de Málaga will hold its 30th edition from 26 February to 7 March 2027 with a poster that symbolises the intersection of cinema, the visual arts and flamenco through two iconic figures in our cultural landscape: Lola Flores and Carlos Saura. The image establishes a dialogue between their respective artistic worlds, connecting Saura’s legacy and the expressive power of Lola Flores with the contemporary perspective of artist Javier Calleja. The design reflects culture’s capacity to transcend disciplines and generations - a theme that carries special significance for an edition celebrating three decades of the Festival’s history.
This was announced by the Festival de Málaga during a press conference attended by the Mayor of Málaga, Francisco de la Torre; Málaga City Council’s Councillor for Culture and Historical Heritage, Mariana Pineda; the Director of the Festival de Málaga and Manager of Málaga Procultura, Juan Antonio Vigar; and various key figures involved in the creation of the poster: Anna Saura, daughter of the director Carlos Saura; Lolita Flores, representing the Flores family; and Javier Calleja and Alicia Gutiérrez Mármol, the creative minds behind this artistic collaboration that produced the image for this edition of the festival.
The presentation was also attended by representatives from the institutions and companies that sponsor the event, including the Territorial Delegate for Culture, Historical Heritage and Sport for the Andalusian Regional Government in Málaga, Carlos García; the Territorial Delegate for Tourism, Justice, Deregulation and Local Administration for the Andalusian Regional Government in Málaga, Belén Rubio; the Councillor for Culture of Málaga Provincial Council, Manuel López Mestanza; Rosa Pérez, a producer at Atresmedia Cine; Juan Carlos Barroso, Territorial Manager for the Central-South region at the "la Caixa" Foundation; Carmen González Novo, Commercial Director for CaixaBank in Málaga, Córdoba, Almería, Ceuta and Melilla; Gema Domínguez, Head of Performing Arts at the Unicaja Foundation; Genoveva Ferragut, Head of Communications and External Relations at Cervezas Victoria; and Ana Bella García, Head of Sponsorship at Repsol. Representatives from Alimentos de España, the Sub-delegate of the Government in Málaga, Francisco Javier Salas and RTVE were unable to attend.
As Juan Antonio Vigar explained, the organisation chose this poster because it captures, in a particularly meaningful way, the spirit with which the Festival de Málaga approaches its 30th edition: through dialogue between various creative disciplines and languages, and by recognising those who have helped shape our cultural landscape - all while keeping an eye on the future. The work brings together three figures of immense personality and stature - Carlos Saura, Lola Flores and Javier Calleja - whose careers, though rooted in different creative languages and generations, share a common ability to push the boundaries of creation and project Spanish culture beyond its borders, he noted.
“Reaching our thirtieth edition is an opportunity to look back and acknowledge the journey travelled, but also to continue creating spaces for connection and exploring a future that is increasingly becoming our present. This poster weaves together memory, contemporary creation and identity into an image that allows us to celebrate our cultural heritage through a vibrant, modern lens. And it does so with a piece that is already part of the Festival’s history, reinforcing that sense of continuity and collective effort that we want to define this very special edition”, the festival director explained.
About the poster
The poster is based on a limited edition of Carlos Saura’s work ‘Lola Flores, Sevillanas 1992’, hand-finished by the artist himself. This edition was the result of a collaboration between Mármol&Fa, an art publishing and cultural management firm led by Alicia Gutiérrez Mármol, with advisory input from internationally renowned artist Javier Calleja, and the filmmaker’s daughter, Anna Saura. During the most recent edition of the Festival, both women chose to gift this piece to the Festival de Málaga to mark the premiere of the documentary Carlos Saura. Ese niño de la fotografía (Carlos Saura: That Boy in the Photograph), directed by Anna Saura herself.
The work is part of an edition originally released in 2021, consisting of 85 pieces in total - 70 serialised reproductions and 15 “fotosaurios” (photo-artworks) - all based on a portrait Saura took of Lola Flores during the filming of his Sevillanas. With this work, the filmmaker paid tribute to one of the most iconic figures in flamenco, whose personality and artistic freedom left a profound mark on his creative imagination.
The donated piece belongs to the series of 15 “fotosaurios” reworked by Saura. In these works, the artist - who passed away at the age of 91, just two years after the release of this edition - combined photography and painting, a hybrid language that defined much of his visual output in his later years.
Anna Saura highlights the special significance of this work within her father’s career: “This edition featuring Lola Flores brings together everything my father was passionate about: cinema, photography, painting and music. It was the first time he painted in a size larger than A3, marking what was to be a new stage in his artistic creation. Part of this process is captured in Carlos Saura. Ese niño de la fotografía, a documentary that premiered in 2025 at the Festival de Málaga”.
For her part, Alicia Gutiérrez Mármol holds a degree in Art History from the University of Málaga and has a long history of involvement in the city’s cultural scene. After spending eight years balancing the management of Calleja Studio - through which she has promoted Javier Calleja internationally and curated exhibitions such as Mr. Günter, The Cat Show – alongside other artistic projects such as Routart, where this collaboration began, she is currently leading her most personal project, Mármol&Fa, which is dedicated to publishing works by major contemporary artists.
For her, the fact that this piece became part of the Festival’s artistic and cultural heritage - eventually evolving into the official image for the 2027 Festival de Málaga, is a source of great joy. She views it as a testament to the profound respect held for Saura’s persona and legacy, as well as for Anna’s tireless efforts to keep her father’s memory alive. “Both Javier Calleja – who designed the poster for the Festival de Málaga a decade ago - and I are incredibly proud to have facilitated this connection, and to see the figures of Saura and the legendary Lola Flores take such a central role in this landmark 30th edition of the Festival”, she states.
About the typeface
The typeface featured on the poster for the 30th Festival de Málaga reproduces Carlos Saura’s own handwriting, incorporating his personal stroke into the visual identity of this edition. This choice goes beyond mere graphic design; it serves as a gesture of recognition and respect for the filmmaker and artist.
The spontaneous, expressive and organic nature of his handwriting engages in a dialogue with the gestural power of the central illustration, in which a flamenco dancer comes to life through energetic brush strokes and a palette dominated by blues, blacks and whites. The combination of these elements creates an image with a strong, distinct character, where the authenticity of the brushwork and the expressiveness of the movement evoke the very essence of Spanish art and culture.
In this way, Carlos Saura’s handwriting is integrated into the poster - not merely as a typographic element, but as a means of preserving his creative imprint and paying tribute to an artistic vision that explored, through cinema and other disciplines, the visual and emotional richness of flamenco.
The poster also revives the “boquerón accent”, a distinctive graphic feature introduced by the Málaga-born artist Javier Calleja into the word “Málaga” for the festival’s 20th anniversary. Ten editions later, this visual nod is once again incorporated into the festival’s graphic identity, reaffirming its connection to the city and the unique way the city refers to itself. A gesture that links different periods in the Festival’s history and highlights the creative legacy of those who have helped shape its visual identity.
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