- The fair, which will remain open until March 16th near the Maspalomas Lighthouse, also offers live demonstrations of various crafts and musical performances.
The 14th edition of the Gran Canaria Craft Fair Primavera Sur opened its doors today near the Maspalomas Lighthouse. 72 artisans from the island participated, ready to display the quality of their handmade works.
From today until March 16th, the three tents set up for the fair will showcase the works of professionals from 15 island municipalities, representing up to 24 crafts, of which three are traditional and 21 are contemporary. Among them, diverse disciplines stand out, such as carpentry, blacksmithing, candle making, and pírgano basketry, along with works of ceramics, jewelry, cutlery, leather goods, and glasswork. The textile sector takes on a special prominence with creations of patchwork, fabric decoration, crochet, macramé, and felt, without forgetting unique crafts such as miniatures, toy making, doll making, and cigar making. Additionally, the fair highlights proposals for creative material recycling, printing and engraving, wood turning, and soap making, showcasing the talent, innovation, and tradition that characterize local craftsmanship.
“This fair is one of the most attractive spaces for the sector,” assured the President of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, Antonio Morales, who recalled that, in addition to the Christmas fair in San Telmo Park, the one organized in summer, and this one, this year, for the first time, a winter event will also be held. “These are spaces that allow artisans to directly market the products they work on all year round, generating significant economic activity on the island, but also a way to defend traditional and modern crafts and, ultimately, to enhance craftsmanship in Gran Canaria.”
In this sense, fairs like this one seek to strengthen the craft sector, creating opportunities for those dedicated to these crafts, not only by giving visibility to their work, but also by providing a space to market them, thus promoting the local economy. In the case of the Gran Canaria Craft Fair Primavera Sur, its privileged location and reference point for tourists and visitors to the south of the island, next to the emblematic Maspalomas Lighthouse, make this event an ideal showcase to highlight the quality of artisan work, value the professionalism of Gran Canaria creators, and spread the cultural richness of island craftsmanship.
The president stated that, in the last three years, the Gran Canaria Craft Fair Primavera Sur has experienced an increase in sales, going from 134,000 euros in 2022 to nearly 160,000 euros in the last edition of 2024, “therefore, this is one of the most important spaces in Gran Canaria to facilitate the marketing of products from the island’s artisans.”
Live Crafts and Music Enrich the Visit
The event, which will remain open from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., is complemented by various activities, including live music and live craft demonstrations. Musical performances will take place on weekends at 5:00 p.m., starting on Saturday with Alberto González, Iván Quintana, and Juan Sebastián Ramírez. On Sunday, March 9th, Zaida Jiménez and Juan Sebastián Ramírez will perform. The following weekend’s performances will take place on Friday, March 14th, with La Musicleta, and on Saturday, March 15th, with Ana Falcón, both at 5:00 p.m.
The fair will also feature daily demonstrations of traditional crafts, by professionals from FEDAC. The demonstrations began today with Pablo Betancor and his work in cane basketry. Tomorrow, Saturday, Eloísa Peña will continue with demonstrations of her palm basketry, and on Sunday, March 9th, Mª Virginia González, specializing in wool spinning, will demonstrate her skills. On Monday, March 10th, it will be Domingo Suárez’s turn, dedicated to cage making, while on Tuesday, March 11th, Ulrike Güse will show her work as a weaver. On Wednesday, March 12th, Ángel Rosario will offer a stone carving demonstration, and on Thursday, March 13th, Manuel González will do the same with cutlery. On the last weekend, Bárbara D. Suárez will combine wool spinning and weaving on Friday, March 14th, while on Saturday, March 15th, Mª Teresa Ríos will present traditional pottery, and on Sunday, March 16th, Nicolasa Alemán will close the program with a drawn thread embroidery demonstration.
Promoted and financed by the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, through the Fund for Ethnography and Development of Canarian Crafts (FEDAC), an agency attached to the Department of Economic Development, Industry, Commerce, and Crafts, the Primavera Sur Craft Fair is organized by Infecar, Gran Canaria Fair, with the collaboration of the San Bartolomé de Tirajana City Council.
The complete program and list of artisans participating in this edition of the Gran Canaria Craft Fair Primavera Sur can be found at the following link: feriasartesaniagrancanaria.es.
