The official poster for Feria 2024 is now the photograph of Phillippe Reynaud: three bullfighters and their pink capes on the Old Bridge of Béziers.
She has caused ink to flow, this sacred “Jean Moulin” poster from the Feria de Béziers! However, it seems that all the controversy surrounding it is well and truly buried. A look back at its story which began on May 7.
That day, on the arena square, the poster for Feria 2024 was unveiled during the Feria off: it was a drawing by Romanin, that is to say Jean Moulin. The City has more than 500 sketches by the resistance fighter and artist from Béziers. Among them, 13 show bullfighting scenes that Jean Moulin, who regularly attended bullfights, sketched. The municipal team chooses one as the Feria poster. We see different characters, caricature type, including the one in the foreground, who would be a picador, pouting.
Pro and anti
Very quickly, voices were raised to denounce the choice of the City and its first magistrate, Robert Ménard, to opt for a drawing of the Resistance fighter associated with bullfighting. Opposition elected officials and anti-bullfighters from Béziers and Biterrois, such as Colbac and Flac, are stepping up to the plate. All arguing that no one knows whether Jean Moulin liked bullfighting or not. Other voices are being raised, notably those pro-bullfighting or Robert Ménard’s entourage, taking up the mayor’s idea that this poster pays homage to Jean Moulin.
Initially, the City decided, this month, that the Feria poster representing the drawing of Jean Moulin will not be affixed to the derived products for this 2024 edition. It is the photograph of Philippe Reynaud, who has already exhibited in Béziers, where we see three bullfighters from behind, facing Saint-Nazaire Cathedral, in the background, which will decorate the goodies.
A more classic visual
And this Monday, June 24, the second and surely final phase of the controversy: the City removes the poster which served as communication. It is replaced by the photo of Reynaud. And the mayor, who says he is tired of this controversy, explains the reason: “I remind you that there was never any question of using the poster for derivative products. And, as far as communication is concerned, we also decided, with Jean Moulin’s family, to stick with a more visual classic.”
Gilbert Benoît, the husband of Jean Moulin’s beneficiary, says that when Robert Ménard called him to inform him of the withdrawal of the poster from the communication, “I could only think good things about it since I wanted the controversy to stop as quickly as possible. All initiatives are good. This municipal decision contributes to it”.
“No question of triumphalism”
On the anti-bullfight side, such as Thierry Hély, from Flac, “There’s no question of triumphalism. But we’re happy, of course”. Recalling that he had contacted a certain number of Resistance associations, in particular the Resistance federation, to inform them of the City’s choice. “Some were surprised, even shocked.” The fervent activist against bullfighting indicated this Monday: “Today, I am therefore stopping my reminders to associations.”
As for Olivier Margé, the director of the arenas, he specifies: “We were able to change our communication in time since this decision was taken before printing the ticketing and the communication posters. We therefore replaced the poster, a week ago, with the photo of Philippe Reynaud in our communication commercial, whether on paper or on the Internet This generated some costs, but not a huge sum. This controversy has not, however, dampened the fervor of aficionados. As proof, the ticket sales figures have already exceeded those. of 2024, with surely two full houses in the arenas this summer.”
