In Spain, shepherds and dairy farmers are being heralded as superheroes in larger-than-life art form.
The Save the Shepherd artistic display being shown at Valencia, Spain’s Fallas de Valencia festival. Photo courtesy of Michele Buster.
An artistic display—known as a “falla” in Spanish—made possible in part by American-based European cheese importer Forever Cheese, was unveiled in Valencia, Spain, in March to celebrate the vital contributions of shepherds and dairy farmers to the region’s economy. The falla was made to draw attention to the Save the Shepherd campaign initiated by Forever Cheese’s co-founder Michele Buster and address the decline of those adopting the shepherding profession, which led to a Manchego shortage in 2022.
“There are fewer and fewer dairy farmers every day. And of course, if you look at it, it’s very sacrificial work, which I understand,” says Buster in a video about the display. “But we cannot afford to lose these people.”
The display depicts several contributors in the dairy sector as larger-than-life comic book superheroes. There’s Wonder Shepherd—think Wonder Woman if she was dressed in camouflage pants and combat boots on a shepherd-saving crusade—and others such as Spider Goatherder, a deliverer of goat milk everywhere, making Spiderman’s signature hand gestures. Completing the trinity is Superherdsman: a visual cross between Thor and Superman whose job is to manage farms, ensuring their continued prosperity.
“We have to change the image of what a shepherd or dairy farmer is like,” Buster says. “We cannot think it’s like an old man with a cane wearing a cap wandering around because that’s no longer true. They are people with degrees; veterinarians or engineers.”
It’s that thought that inspired Buster to pay tribute to dairy farmers and animal herdsmen and women via artistic display. Shown at Fallas de Valencia, a Spanish cultural heritage festival in Valencia, the falla represents the long artisan tradition behind Spanish agriculture and cheese.
Browse the display below and watch this video to learn more about the falla and Buster’s Save the Shepherd campaign.
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- The face of Superherdsman during the creation of the display. Superherdman’s job is to manage farms and ensure their prosperity. Photo courtesy of Michele Buster.
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- Views of Superherdsman, left, Wonder Shepherd, top, and Spider Goatherder, right. Photo courtesy of Michele Buster.
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- A view of Wonder Shepherd, who tops the artistic display. Photo courtesy of Michele Buster.
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- Michele Buster poses with a sheep that’s part of the artistic display. Photo courtesy of Michele Buster.
Alana Pedalino
Alana Pedalino's work has been featured in Bon Appétit, Chicken Soup for the Soul, and The Buffalo News. She's currently serving as culture's social media manager. She loves to write poetry, cook spaghetti carbonara, and kayak. Follow her @APstyle on X. Read more by her at alanapedalino.com.
