Malaga mayor in favour of leaving controversial Neptune and Venus statues in their current location in the port

With just two days to go before the expiry of the six-month deadline agreed for the removal of the Venus and Neptune statues from the port area, De la Torre confirms that the sculptor Ginés Serrán wishes to donate the statues to the city on a permanent basis, a gesture he has accompanied with a petition bearing 12,000 signatures in support of his work.

The matter will be discussed tomorrow, Tuesday, by the local government team, which plans to approve the donation and then ask the port authority to keep the sculpture group in that location "for the time being".

"If someone is giving us something, why would we turn it down? It’s another matter whether we move it to a place where it fits in better, but we believe that right there, where it is, people are in favour of it," he said.

The mayor bases his position on the sentiment of the city. “We know that there is a clear majority in favour, while fully respecting the views of those who oppose it and who would prefer different sculptures (...) We believe that, given the 12,000 signatures and the surveys carried out by some media outlets, the logical thing is to accept this donation and leave it where it is for the time being,” said the mayor, referring to the survey carried out by SUR in which some 4,000 people took part (75 per cent in favour, 25 per cent against).

This, he pointed out, is the most advantageous option, because it "doesn’t cost" any money, but De la Torre left the door open to other "alternatives".

“We are open to hearing suggestions and discussing this matter,” he added, in a message to the cultural groups and institutions that have repeatedly expressed their opposition to these sculptures occupying that space. In this regard, he referred to comments made by the president of the San Telmo Academy of Fine Arts, Rosario Camacho, in which she mentioned that the figures would be better placed closer to the water. "Well, it’s worth looking into that possibility."

However, in his view, "there are many people" who believe that this is the ideal location, "framed by the columns, at a spot along the route from the city to the harbour, where many people take photos".

"But I must stress that it is worth considering whether there are better options that could be placed there and which would also garner public support in that regard," he added.

When it comes to art, he added, "there are many opinions and tastes". "And that also depends a little on people’s sensibilities - on whether they prefer modern art to more classical art or art inspired by the classical, such as these sculptures," he concluded.

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