Death of an afternoon tradition

The redundant La Monumental bullring in Barcelona. Photo / Andrew Alderson

Mum once said it was the most barbaric thing she had ever seen, yet, in Ernest Hemingway's 1932 bullfighting bible Death in the Afternoon, he wrote it was "the only art in which the artist is in danger of death and in which the degree of brilliance in the performance is left to the fighter's honour".

As an aficionado, Hemingway was a regular at such contests across Spain and chummy with the top matadors. Mum wanted them to get the horns where it hurts.

Few sports - if you consider it a sport rather than animal cruelty - polarise as much. Is it the ultimate in conquering fear or unmasked brutality?

A campaign for a ban on the sport in Catalonia successfully went through the region's autonomous parliament in 2010. The following year, Barcelona's La Monumental was the final arena to stage a bullfight in the territory. Animal rights activists worked under the slogan "torture is neither art nor culture" to get the law passed. Some argue proponents were also motivated to establish further political separatism from the rest of Spain. Catalonia sided with Mum. Bullfighting was declared bulldust.

A visit last week revealed the faded glory of a bygone era. While other arenas have morphed into shopping centres and concert venues, La Monumental lies redundant in Barcelona's inner suburbs, one metro stop from the spires of architect Antoni Gaudi's Sagrada Familia Catholic church.

The crowd congregating there contrasts sharply with the bullfighting ring's peeling yellow pastel paint, faded posters advertising the Taurino Museum (shut until August 7) and signs on boarded panels indicating the structure is out of bounds 24/7. A proposed eco-centre with offices, laboratories, beach volleyball court and organic shops is yet to come to fruition.

Yet once it was a social epicentre. Indigo and white mosaic tiled patterns meld with brick laying which could withstand a mortar shell; proud turrets sprout from the corners and the structure emits a gladiatorial feel, which, to the untrained eye, calls to mind Rome's Coliseum. Shame such an impressive facade concealed what many considered to be meaningless bloodshed within.

That comes with a degree of hypocrisy for many of us avowed carnivores who marvel at the wonders of steak. Yes, we don't often eat bull, although once, when Roasty caused mischief in a paddock at home, we ended up eating his sausages for about a year. There's a supposed mitigating factor in that at least a homekill is instant. Bang! The beast collapses in the paddock. The death is not prolonged as a matador dances around a tortured animal swishing his cape in a sequined Elvis suit.

The restaurant La Gran Pena (which translates as The Big Sorrow, perhaps in reference to the loss of the bulls) lies opposite La Monumental. Roberto Garcia has worked there 15 years. He recently took over managing the business from his father. The request for a swift pint on a 35-degree day coaxes out his best English.

"It's possible bullfighting will finish for good [in Spain as a whole] because the people who go these days tend to be older. It'll be a respite for the animals. A lot of Catalonians don't feel it is a true tradition whereas it is in [wider] Spain. It tends to be a political issue but at least it is good news for bulls in the 21st century. The theme emerging is that people see society without bullfighting as being more ethical.

"I've probably been about half a dozen times in my life. It is a unique art. A life in the ring for the torero [bullfighter] can be exciting. When you watch them kill the bull, it is a spectacle. As far as entertainment goes, it's very different to the cinema or watching any other sport. I think the last minutes of life for the bull are awful but it's different for different people."

Francina Picardo Bonet is a 19-year-old tourism student whose grandfather used to attend.

"He used to enjoy it and when he couldn't go, he was upset. Like many others, the tradition brought it close to him but I think Spanish people have better traditions than bullfighting to be proud of.

"I've always been totally against it because people seem to think it is some kind of power or art. For me, it's neither, it's only people hurting animals. It seems totally reasonable to close it down. People thought they [the matadors] were heroes, but not me. I'd rather watch swimming, volleyball or football. I've been to La Monumental but only for a circus."

Roberto and Francina's attitudes reflect the zeitgeist, judging by the media coverage in recent years. Bullfighting appears to be shuffling its way to the back paddock.