La Sirena: A Mermaid for Sitges

Beside the Mediterranean, a bronze mermaid raises one arm above her head and extends her other hand toward those passing along the shore. La Sirena brings a mythical presence to the waterfront, but its story is also about a sculptor and a community that wanted his work to endure.

Pere Jou created the original plaster sculpture in 1955. Born in Barcelona in 1891, he developed a lasting connection with Sitges after artist and cultural organizer Miquel Utrillo commissioned him to help decorate the Maricel complex in 1915. His carved capitals became part of its architecture, establishing a relationship with the town that continued throughout his career.

Jou died in 1964 before La Sirena was cast in bronze. That year, supporters organized a public fundraising campaign to bring the sculpture into a more permanent form. Completed in 1965, the bronze mermaid became a public expression of appreciation for an artist whose work had helped shape Sitges.

Her setting gives the sculpture much of its character. Positioned beside the rocks and water near the steps of La Punta, she seems to belong to the boundary between land and sea. Her open hand offers an approachable gesture, while her curved figure contrasts with the rough stone beneath her. The sea provides a changing background to a figure held still in bronze.

The waterfront also exposes the sculpture to weather and salt. In 2018, the town council and Museus de Sitges undertook a restoration, with conservator Mamen Fradera treating the work to recover its appearance and protect its surfaces. Preserving the mermaid required another act of care from the community that had originally helped bring her into being.

La Sirena’s place in Sitges grew from both artistic imagination and public participation. A plaster figure became a bronze landmark because people chose to support it. Along the shore, she preserves that connection between Pere Jou, the town, and the Mediterranean setting that gives his mermaid a home.