Drawing teacher David Palomero has been declared the winner of the XVI Evaristo Guerra Painting Prize in Vélez-Málaga with his work 'Vestigio'. The competition, organised by the Provincial Council and the Vélez-Málaga City Council, awards €3,000 for the first prize and two runner-up prizes of €1,000 and €500.
Drawing teacher David Palomero has won the XVI Evaristo Guerra Painting Prize in Vélez-Málaga with the work 'Vestigio', as announced by the jury this Friday. The announcement was made public by the painter Evaristo Guerra, who presided over the jury, as reported by Diario Sur.
The competition, organised by the Provincial Council in collaboration with the Vélez-Málaga City Council, offers €3,000 for the first prize, as well as two runner-up prizes of €1,000 and €500.
The jury particularly valued Palomero's pictorial language. In their decision, they highlighted that 'Vestigio' possesses “a marked contemporary character within realism”, and also praised “the very good composition of lights and shadows” presented in the work.
“A marked contemporary character within realism”
The first runner-up prize, worth €1,000, went to José Javier Rodríguez for 'Miroir XI'. The jury defined the work as a “very contemporary” composition that interprets “two spaces that are ethereal yet very connected”.
The second runner-up prize, worth €500, was awarded to Manuel Martín for 'Cuneta'. In this case, the decision emphasised the “very technical brushstrokes” used to combine the vegetation with “the threatening sky”, also incorporating electrical wiring as an element that, according to the jury members, introduces “a touch of modernity” into the composition.
Palomero received the award at an event held in the exhibition hall of the Convent of San Francisco in Vélez-Málaga, accompanied by provincial deputy Jesús María Claros, the mayor, Jesús Lupiáñez (PP), and the councillor for Culture and Historical Heritage, Alicia Ramírez (PP). The award ceremony coincided, as is customary, with the celebration of the Real Feria de San Miguel.
The winner arrives in Vélez-Málaga with previous recognitions in his recent career. David Palomero Gómez received the Special Jury Prize at the JABA awards in Badajoz in 2024 for 'Desnudo II' and achieved the same distinction again in 2025 with 'Anita'. In 2022, he had already won one of the painting prizes at the same competition with the work 'Solana'.
This year, his work 'Raíces' won the International Painting Competition Zurbarán. The painting was later presented to the president of the Provincial Council of Badajoz, Raquel del Puerto, during the event where she received the 'Extremadura of the Year' award, held last July.
The participating works have been on display since September 24 at the Convent of San Francisco and can be visited until October 31. The City Council officially presented this year's call as the XVI edition of the Evaristo Guerra Prize.
The competition has established itself in recent years as one of the cultural events included in the programme of the Vélez fair. In 2021, it celebrated its eleventh edition, and subsequently, two economic runner-up prizes were added to the main award, thus expanding recognition to three of the works selected by the jury.
The exhibition will allow visitors to view both 'Vestigio' and the other selected works throughout October. The Convent of San Francisco will keep the exhibition open until the last Saturday of the month, extending beyond the Real Feria an initiative with which the Provincial Council and City Council pay tribute to Evaristo Guerra and give visibility to artists from various backgrounds.
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