Marbella artist, John Christian Caldeira Weibull, born on December, 12 2023, is lining up a three-day exhibition in Malmo next November, two years after Guinness World Records named him the youngest male artist in the world. Officials verified the title in October 2024, when he was 10 months and seven days old. Relatives say colour arrived before speech, and the forthcoming hang is billed Art: my first language.

Record booked before he could walk

Mum Rubia Caldeira gave him an LED drawing tablet at five months. Scribbling started almost at once, according to Guinness World Records, which later logged photos and video of those first marks. Paints and canvases followed at six or seven months. Record staff called him active and observant, and he kept going as his hands grew stronger.

A Marbella exhibition on the same October day as the verification sold several pictures. And at another at Villa Padierna, he is said to have sold five works went before the doors even opened.

Three days in Malmo this November

MIVA Fine Art Gallery in Malmo will show his pictures from 20 to 22 November. Gallery notes say the hang will follow his path from tablet doodles to later canvases. John turns three in December and still paints. Details of the space sit on the gallery site at mivafineart.com.

His father is Swedish and his mother Brazilian, which helps explain a Costa del Sol toddler heading north. Marbella already has a growing Swedish community and a Swedish school, as EWN has covered. Families looking for kids’ painting sessions on the coast can also find local classes in our Costa del Sol kids’ art round-up.

Whether Swedish collectors treat a three-year-old’s pictures as curios or as serious work remains to be seen. For now, a Marbella boy who once dragged a finger across a glowing screen has a date in a Swedish gallery.

Residents in eastern Estepona are about to get a major new outdoor space, with a huge 20,000-square-metre park in La Boladilla expected to open within a few weeks.

Work on the new Estepona park is now nearing completion, with lighting and public street lighting among the final jobs being carried out before residents can use the area.

La Boladilla Park brings sport and family facilities

Families will have access to two children’s play areas featuring inclusive equipment designed to accommodate young ones with reduced mobility. Sports facilities will include a 1,000-square-metre sports court, while biosaludable exercise circuits will give residents another option for keeping active outdoors throughout the year.

Around 300 leafy and ornamental trees are being planted across the site, together with Mediterranean shrubs, ground-cover plants and naturalised grass areas. Shade might not be much at first, but future growth is planned into the design. Pedestrian paths will allow people to move through the park, while an automatic irrigation system controlled remotely has been installed to help manage water consumption.

More green space coming to Estepona

La Boladilla is part of a wider programme that has seen new green areas created across the outskirts of Estepona. Other projects include a 20,000-square-metre park at Bel-Air, a 10,000-square-metre area near La Resinera and Las Joyas, and a 13,000-square-metre green meadow at the entrance to Cancelada.

Another 26,000-square-metre area north of Cancelada includes a seven-a-side football pitch and biosaludable circuits, while a 5,000-square-metre park has been developed close to Estepona Hospital.

Developers have carried out the La Boladilla project after receiving all the required authorisations from Estepona Town Hall. Final installation work is now taking place, meaning residents should not have long to wait before the new green space becomes available.

Once open, La Boladilla Park will provide local families with more room for walking, children’s play, exercise and outdoor leisure, adding another sizeable recreational area to eastern Estepona.

Estepona is getting in on the 25th anniversary of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone with three days of free family fun from September 3 to 5. Town Hall and Asociacion Unicornio have put together 25 Años de Magia to mark the film’s Spanish cinema debut on 30 November 2001, and you will not need a ticket for Hogwarts Express to join in.

Outdoor film night kicks things off

Thursday, September 3, at 9.30pm is when Parque Botanico Orquidario screens the first film under the glass domes. That same garden already draws plant fans year-round.

Full-size creatures take over Calle Terraza

Friday, September 4, Calle Terraza stays busy from noon until midnight. Life-size figures of Harry, a troll and a Thestral will line the street, with stalls selling merch. Twelve hours of photo ops should keep both old Potterheads and kids who only know the trailers happy.

Escape room slots are tight

Centro Cultural Padre Manuel is running a Harry Potter escape room the same Friday, 3pm to 9pm. Five sittings, eight people each. It has sold out for now (places went in seconds), but more places may be laid on closer the time. If there are any places, survivalmagic.es is the place to check.

Parade, then the soundtrack live

A “Pasacalles Magico” parade leaves the Orquidario at 8pm, winds through the old centre and finishes in Plaza del Reloj. The Banda Sinfonica Ciudad de Jaen then plays the film scores at 9pm. Those Hedwig cues still land, even if your kids now know every spoiler.

Saturday is board-game time

Saturday, September 5, 10am to 2pm, the same cultural centre hosts ten themed table games — Dominoes, Dobble, Trivial Pursuit, Brain Box, Strike and more. First come, first served, no fee, players rotate. Handy after a week of Estepona street parties, from the ham trail on the Paseo Maritimo to Cancelada’s fair.

Warner Bros is sending the first film back into cinemas worldwide around the same dates as part of its Back to Hogwarts push, so Estepona’s street version sits neatly beside the official anniversary. If you want the official story, characters and film details, the best place is the official site, Wizarding World. That is the home of the books and films, not a fan page.

Bring a jumper for the late screening just in case; book the escape room as soon as possible if you want a slot; and leave the broom at home, and Estepona’s pavements will do the rest.