The bond of Agustín de la Torre, a member of the Association of Salesian Cooperators, with the Salesian Congregation began when he was six years old and still continues today since he works at the "Mary Help of Christians" school in Seville as a drawing teacher. "My life has always revolved around the figures and pedagogy of Don Bosco and Mother Mazzarello," explains de la Torre.
One of his greatest passions is precisely the world of graphics and illustration, and for many years he has been publishing on social networks, trying to make art an instrument of evangelization and a "translation" of the message of Jesus. He has also produced numerous drawings of the Salesian environment that circulate in many parts of the world; some of them adorn schools, social works and have even been on the cover of the Salesian Bulletin.
"However, I was missing something," the artist said. "Every year I would wait for the Rector Major's Strenna and look at the photos and images that accompanied it. I always thought the same thing: 'One day I will have the privilege of making the poster myself.' And that day has come. When I was offered the chance to do it, I felt that one of my dreams had come true and we know what dreams mean and how important they are in Salesian terms," he added.
Agustín de la Torre promptly set to work, focusing on the phrase of St. Francis de Sales that inspires the 2022 Strenna. "I thought that LOVE, the central word of the message of St. Francis, Don Bosco and Jesus of Nazareth, which iconographically is represented as a heart, should be composed of young people of different ages, cultures, ethnicities, social situations. A heart presided over and embraced by Don Bosco, supported by Saint Francis de Sales and, of course, by his Help of Christians," the artist explains.
The design is also rich in references to the Salesian world, which are distributed in a more or less hidden manner throughout the whole: from the dates of Don Bosco's birth and death to the Project of Apostolic Life of the Salesian Cooperators, from chestnuts to the daisy – [margherita, in Italian], in honor of the name of Don Bosco's mother. There is also a dog that, while not gray like Don Bosco's famous ‘guardian angel’, has the Italian word "grigio" (gray) written on its paw.
Everything in the poster is "Salesian," even the shadows of the characters, which, in fact, have a 24% opacity (the number of Mary Help of Christians).
"I thank God for this gift," Agustín de la Torre concludes. "I hope to continue to draw and paint the message of the Gospel for many years to come, especially through the image and witness of people who put it into practice and who are as great and indispensable as St. John Bosco."
