This Saturday, October 14th, at exactly 10 a.m., under a grey sky and rainy weather, the ceremony for the interment of the ashes of Peter Stämpfli —who passed away on January 19th in Paris— took place at the Sant Sebastià Cemetery in Sitges, in the grave he had acquired several years ago. It is a simple and functional grave, covered by a black iron plate surrounded by stones from the Garraf.
It was a simple and moving ceremony, attended by the mayor of Sitges, Aurora Carbonell; the councillor for Culture, Albert Oliver-Rodés; councillors Mònica Gallardo and Rosa Tubau; the director of the Sitges Museums, Txema Romero; the president of the Grup d’Estudis Sitgetans, Jordi Milà; the president of the Cercle Artístic, Carles Arola; the president of the Societat Recreativa El Retiro, Franchu Núñez; the president of the publishing company of L’Eco de Sitges, Santi Terraza; members of the Fundació Stämpfli, Ferran Martínez and Lluís Jou; as well as a good number of Sitges residents, neighbours and friends of the Stämpfli couple, including a significant group of workers from the Sitges Museums and relatives of Anna Maria Stämpfli Torelló, Pere’s widow.
During the brief and emotional ceremony, the urn containing the ashes —which arrived in Sitges on the 12th and had been kept at Carrer d’en Bosc 16 since then— was placed next to the grave, beneath the flag of Sitges. The ceremony was led by the Foundation’s secretary, Lluís Jou, who addressed the attendees with the following words:
Good Saturday everyone. And thank you very much for coming, especially on this gray day with such Parisian weather.
Today we are not opening the garden of the wall to have a snack after the Sortida d’Ofici; nor are we inaugurating the Espai Cultural Pere Stämpfli to give its use to the Grup d’Estudis Sitgetans; nor are we raising the flag of the Foundation over the old Mercat del Peix to inaugurate the Foundation’s facilities; nor are we opening the new rooms in the big house on Carrer d’en Bosc; nor are we inaugurating any of the exhibitions of the last 15 years; nor are we attending any of the parties that Pere and Anna have been organizing for more than 40 years. Today we have gathered at the Cementiri de Sant Sebastià, in Sitges, to say goodbye to Peter Stämpfli.
And we are saying goodbye, precisely, by welcoming him among us. Welcoming his ashes, as he wanted, under the sky and by the sea of Sitges. Here, so close to our artists: Urtillo, Canudes, Batlle, Jou, Sunyer, Sisquella, Grau or Ángeles Santos. Now, too, Pere Stämpfli.
Here his ashes will remain, but the testimony of his time in Sitges remains on Carrer d’en Bosc, on the wall and, above all, in the rooms of the Foundation that, to make us live the art of his time, he and Anna Maria created.
The poem En la mort de Pere Stämpfli, written on January 20th and adapted for the occasion, was read by David Jou.
Van comprar, van restaurar, van donar vida;
hi plantaren art, festa i acollida.
Pere, Anna Maria,
amfitrions generosos i benignes,
el carrer d’en Bosch porta el vostre signe:
els dos grans escuts en ferro del carrer i de Sitges.
Per a un artista que ha treballat tant
l’empremta del trànsit i de la fugida,
ara, en la mort, com segueix estant
present en els colors, en les geometries
del llegat que ens ha anat deixant.
Rastre i trànsit, quietud i energia!
Cendra, avui, però no pas oblit.
Cendra, encara, plena de sentit.
Cendra que ens invita al record de l’alegria
que va ser crear, compartir, donar.
Cendra que ens vol acompanyar
des de prop de l’obra que ens fa tanta companyia.
Benvinguda siguis a prop del nostre mar;
que per segles siguis una memòria viva.
After the poem, Mayor Carbonell handed over the urn to be placed in the grave and offered closing remarks.
The first thing I have to do is thank Pere and Anna Maria Stämpfli for choosing Sitges as a place to stay. But, above all, I have to thank Pere Stämpfli for choosing it as a place to rest eternally. For Sitges, it is a great pride that he rests in this cemetery. For that alone, we would be grateful.
We also have to thank them for having integrated so well among us, experiencing the festivities, talking to people, learning Catalan… And, even more, for having contributed to preserving the architectural heritage, restoring a good part of Carrer d’en Bosc. And for having supported many cultural initiatives and associations in Sitges.
The two of them invited many international artists to come to Sitges who, in this way, have gotten to know our town and have also made it known as a place where art is loved. A place where, thanks to Pere and Anna Maria, we have a good collection of contemporary art of international standing. To Pere Stämpfli and also to Anna Maria Torelló, all our recognition and gratitude.
And now we will leave a nice bouquet of white and red carnations, which are the colors of the Sitges flag, in memory of those carnations that one day he threw from a helicopter – a carnation for each Sitges resident – to join one of our major festivals.
Thank you, Pere. Rest in peace among us.
After the mayor, representatives from the Cercle Artístic, the Sitges Museums, the Grup d’Estudis Sitgetans, El Retiro, L’Eco de Sitges and the Fundació Stämpfli also laid carnations, as did many attendees. The Town Council had provided carnations near the grave so that everyone present could offer one in tribute to the late artist.
The Fundació Stämpfli has produced a memorial card for the ceremony, which, besides noting that he was an Honorary Citizen of Sitges and Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, includes a reproduction of Autoretrat amb gavardina. The work, created in 1963 by Peter Stämpfli himself, depicts a self-portrayed figure dressed in black trousers and an overcoat, seen from behind, seemingly withdrawing from the scene —a fitting metaphor with which to conclude his farewell.
