Is it possible to remember a past that has not been lived? Clearly not, unless one appeals to a new age way of living that refers to a collective memory. It is possible, however, to feel a memory as one’s own as part of a sort of cryptomnesia.
The Madrid that many of us have not lived through feels crisp at times. The films of Eloy de la Iglesia or the portrait that Sergio del Molino makes of him in España Vacía ( everyone has their own references): the Madrid of the Great Trauma (a name coined by del Molino to refer to those cities that were not acclimatized to receive hordes of citizens coming from other towns).
That city no longer exists and the possibility of doing archaeology of it refers us to historiography: to films, books and, of course, photos.
Regarding the latter, one of the great portraitists of that Madrid was Javier Campano, who documented a city that was changing at an accelerated pace between 1976 and 1989 and whose work can now be seen on display at the Sala El Águila as part of a free exhibition that takes place in the context of PhotoEspaña 2024.
what does the exhibition Barrios. Madrid 1976 1980?
The exhibition deals with the periphery of the city through great contrasts. The problems of a rural exodus in an accordion city that was not able to accommodate such a large population and that first fell prey to shantytowns and then to vertical shantytowns.
The Madrid of that time is summarized or condensed in his photos: in children playing soccer in the wastelands of neighborhoods like Hortaleza or in the clothes hanging on the facades of a Vallecano settlement. A Madrid that is also reminiscent of that of the Tio Pio Hill or that of the low houses.
It is an exhibition that gathers up to ninety unpublished images from the catalog and also two audiovisuals of the Polans Collective, which has been curated by Ana Berruguete and of which the website that has enabled the Community of Madrid in this regard says the following: “Campano is committed to being a traveler in the city itself in which lives and travels through the neighborhoods of Madrid, infiltrating in everyday life without being seen”.
This exhibition, which can be enjoyed free of charge until September 8, “once again makes El Águila the headquarters of the Official Section of the PHotoESPAÑA International Festival, considered one of the most important events in the visual arts,” said the Minister of Culture, Tourism and Sport, Paco Serrano.
Hours and location of the exhibition
-
- Monday to Saturday: from 10:00-14:00 and from 16:00-20:00
-
- Sundays and holidays: from 10:00-14:00
-
- Closed: Mondays in July and August
Where: Sala El Águila (c/ Ramírez de Prado, 3. Metro: Delicias L3 / Cercanías: Delicias)