Galerie Molitor

The Jarramplas Festival has taken place every January for the past hundred years in the western Spanish town of Piornal, in Cáceres. The festival’s name derives from the word “arramplar” (“to steal”) and refers to a figure called the Jarramplas, who, according to legend, was punished for stealing cattle from local farmers. Today, this myth has evolved into an annual ritual held on the feast day of Saint Sebastian in which one person is chosen to dress in a mask, armor, and multi-colored ribbons, and is then pelted with turnips by the townspeople.

In Jarramplas, the artist never reveals the true target of the young participants. Through precise editing and a disorienting soundtrack, the film creates the impression that the youths are fighting one another. Afsah presents a choreographed scenography of the violence that increasingly permeates our daily lives.