The elderly woman from Spain who achieved global fame for her poorly executed restoration attempt on a valuable Jesus Christ fresco has passed away at the age of 94.
Cecilia Giménez, from the town of Borja in northern Spain, rose to prominence 13 years ago after she undertook to restore a century-old painting titled Ecce Homo housed within her local church.
Giménez's restoration effort spread across the internet and earned the moniker "Potato Jesus", largely due to the altered likeness of Christ's head bearing a resemblance to a furry primate.
Local Confirmation and Homage
The nonagenarian's death was announced by Borja's mayor, Eduardo Arilla, in a social media post, where he described her as a "great enthusiast of painting from a young age".
"Rest in peace Cecilia, your memory will live on with us," Arilla wrote.
Arilla further referenced Giménez's "now-legendary restoration of Ecce Homo" in the summer of 2012, which "because of the poor state of conservation it was in, Cecilia, acting in good faith, chose to repaint the work over".
The Painting's Background and the Now-Infamous Intervention
The Ecce Homo ("Behold the Man" in Latin) by nineteenth-century painter Elias Garcia Martinez had been held for over a century in the Santuario de la Misericordia close to Zaragoza.
At the time, Giménez, who was 81 years old, stated that parishioners had "traditionally fixed everything here", and that she had received permission from the parish priest to do the work.
She added at the time that anybody who came into the church would have observed she was applying paint to the existing image.
An Unexpected Tourist Boom
The impact of the repaint job led to the creation of the "Monkey Christ" meme and saw the once quiet town of Borja quickly become a significant tourist destination.
The town, which had previously welcomed just five thousand visitors per year, attracted over 40,000 tourists by 2013, and managed to raise over €50,000 for charity from the attention.
Currently, local authorities estimate that between 15,000 and 20,000 tourists travel to Borja each year to view the famous portrait, which is now protected by a protective shield of glass.
Legacy and Local Support
Following the wave of criticism, with support from local residents and well-wishers globally, Giménez later hold an art exhibition showcasing 28 of her personal works.
She was commended by the mayor for her kind-hearted nature and years of dedication to the parish.
In the end, what began as a sincere but unsuccessful art repair created an improbable piece of pop culture and provided unprecedented tourist revenue to a humble Spanish town.
