From Passing the Guild Exam to Setting Up Ten Bonfires in Alicante: The Year of His Life

Young artist Iván Gómez Villalba is preparing to make history at the Alicante Bonfires. The craftsman, a third-generation member of the Fonseca family, will sign the most bonfires this coming June, planting ten between children's and adult bonfires, not counting the facades of barracks he will also erect in the city's streets.

Gómez Villalba carries the bonfire art and festive spirit in his veins. Grandson of Mauricio and son of José Francisco, he is the middle of three brothers who decided to continue the family trade, which he learned from childhood in the workshop. "I was there playing while my father built the Special and the official ones."

Now, this young man from Alicante has his own infrastructure, where he spends day, afternoon, and night bringing his sketches to life in three dimensions, both for Bonfires and Fallas. The latter, five adult and three children's, are what he is finalizing during this first month of the year, to start the June orders as soon as possible.

Last year, he debuted with the children's bonfire of Florida-Plaza de la Viña in the second category, along with Sant Blai de Dalt, winning second prize, and Polígono de Babel-Bernardo Pérez Sales in the fifth. He also touched the Special category with the facade of the Peña Los Gorilas barrack, the oldest in the festival, winning fourth prize.

Months later, Iván Gómez Villalba successfully passed the Guild of Bonfire Artists' entrance exam. The result of the test was clear; he has learned the trade from a young age under the guidance of his best teachers. "When I finished studying (as a schoolboy), I went to the workshop, and they taught me to model," but the pressure came "from the surname," the Fonseca spirit that characterizes him.

After these achievements, the young artist is preparing for a great challenge: to set up ten bonfires next June, for which he is grateful for their support. Thus, Iván Gómez Villalba will spread his art across various districts with adult bonfires, such as Maisonnave, in the third; Virgen del Remedio-La Cruz, in the fifth; and Monjas-Santa Faz, L'Harmonia-San Gabriel, and Polígono de Babel-Bernardo Pérez Sales, in the sixth.

Also with five other children's bonfires, including some double-ups and repeats, in Maisonnave, also in the third category; Sant Blai de Dalt - of which he was the children's president - in the fourth; Nou Alipark, in the fifth; L'Harmonia-San Gabriel and Polígono de Babel-Bernardo Pérez Sales in the sixth.

"This year is quite a challenge," he confesses with the assurance that "in my family, we are used to it." This young artist puts his gift and talent into each bonfire, along with the excitement of practicing the trade of his life, which has been absolutely vocational and inherited from his grandparents, father, and uncles. He also has great support, with help in each of his projects.

To all of them, "we dedicate a lot of time and passion," he explains while admitting that his favorite part of the work as a bonfire artist is the painting process. "I love bringing it to life and appreciating the finishes; it's what I like the most."

While he finishes some works and starts others in his workshop, Iván Gómez Villalba continues on the path to his dream: to one day build the official bonfire, the one planted in the Alicante Town Hall square and representing the entire city. This young man knows that the achievement will come one day, "it's what I aspire to, but for now, I'm going calmly, step by step."

This young artist knows that the key to success is perseverance and good work, but it was early on that, by his own merits, his name entered the golden book of the Alicante Bonfires, with a planting of ten, quite literally.