Javier Campano: Barrios [Neighborhoods] 1976-1980
Today I'm presenting a very special post for me. While some claim there's no objective measure of a work of art (a view I completely disagree with), on this occasion, I confess that subjectivity overwhelms me. You'll understand these lines I've written here later.
Before continuing, I must mention someone, a wonderful person, whom I met on Hive. We've spoken on several occasions about the Madrid where I grew up and which shaped me into who I am today. A Madrid surrounded by red poppies and thistle flowers.
That Hivier I'm referring to is @palomap3, and this visit to one of Madrid's leading art centers is especially dedicated to her.
Like a mobile eye, Campano roams the city without documentary intent, discovering a poetic order in its fragments.
PHotoEspaña 2024 (Community of Madrid)
[Como un ojo móvil, Campano recorre la ciudad sin intención documental, descubriendo en sus fragmentos un orden poético.
PHotoEspaña 2024 (Comunidad de Madrid)]
Between June 11 and September 8, 2024, 90 unpublished photographs by Javier Campano (1950-) were exhibited at the El Águila cultural center (Madrid), capturing the Madrid I knew as a child.
I arrived in this great city in 1976. I came with my parents, who were born in Madrid in the 1950s but were forced to migrate for economic reasons. Upon our return, we found a Madrid that was very different from other European cities... A Madrid far removed from the tourist image of the Prado Museum or the Puerta del Sol.
The title Barrios (Neighborhoods) of this exhibition refers to the suburbs of Madrid that grew as a result of the rural exodus during the years of “developmentalism.” An exodus of millions of Spaniards who, attracted by industrial development, migrated during the 1960s and 1970s to the large industrial centers: Madrid, Bilbao, Barcelona, etc.
Suburban neighborhoods saw their populations multiply with the arrival of these new residents... neighborhoods that grew without some of the most basic services that are now part of everyday life: health centers, schools, water, electricity, paved roads, sewage systems...
A Madrid where a donkey pulling a cart or stray dogs were a common sight in everyday life.
It was also a Madrid of solidarity, not only because of the development of the first neighborhood movements, but also because of the solidarity among neighbors. Javier Campano says of these conquerors of new spaces:
I was impressed by the dignity with which they led such a hard life [the neighbors] and how they asserted their rights by forming associations and demonstrating.
This collection of photographs is a testimony to the urban transition of that Madrid. A transition that went from shanty towns, low-rise houses, and substandard housing to the first emergency urban planning schemes and the reorganization of these neighborhoods.
These photographs take us to that belt of poverty and dreams that grew around an urban center oblivious to the problems of those peripheral residents. To neighborhoods such as Tetuán, El Pilar, Orcasitas, Entrevías... 90 images (here is only a selection of these) that go beyond the urban landscape, immortalizing the lives of those residents.
Javier Campano's photography can be considered street photography. It is the work of a photographer who, camera in hand, hunts for images as he strolls through the urban landscape. But what I find most striking about his work is the respect he shows for the people he photographs.
The Barrio and its people are often viewed with sensationalism, and I would say with a certain elitism completely unjustified: serious criminals do not live in the Barrio, never have and never will.
Campano's gaze also does not show, thankfully, that pity for the poor that is so present in some “progressive” or “humanitarian” narratives.
In contrast to these superficial views, Javier Campano shows us the dignity of life in the Barrio, the pride of being who you are:
It is admirable to see that, against all odds, people adapted to what they had and made use of the little they had. Children played in the mud, the elderly sat in chairs in the sun among the rubble, growing vegetables on a piece of land at the entrance to their homes or raising ducks and even goats.
I hope you enjoy this stroll through the nostalgia of a Madrid that no longer exists (or exists in other forms).
Text sources:
Campano, J. (2024). Barrios. Madrid 1976-1980. Madrid: Departamento de Cultura, Turismo, y Deporte - Comunidad de Madrid / La Fábrica. ISBN 978-84-10-02420-5.
For decent housing (Por una vivienda digna)
Queremos parques y viviendas sociales (We want parks and social housing)
We're not asking for the moon; we demand to live in the neighborhood (No pedimos la luna; exigimos vivir en el barrio)
Schools (Colegios)
Our faith is a commitment to justice (Nuestra fe es un compromiso con al justicia)
We need decent housing; but affordable housing (Necesitamos viviendas dignas; pero accesibles)
Less speculation and more repair (Menos especulación y más reparación)
Your children will be educated here (Tus hijos se formarán aquí)
Let's save the neighborhood from speculation (Salvemos al barrio de la especulación)
I hope you liked this post.
Thank you for joining me here.
Banner edited with Canva pro and cropped with ezgif.com.
Avatar created with IA Ideogram.
Translated into English from my native language Spanish with Google Translator.
All photographs are my own.
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Thank you so much @worldmappin.
It exists in other ways, I'm afraid it does, and possibly with less hope of improvement.
This is just my opinion from a very distant perspective.
I remember my father working briefly in Orcasitas; I never went there, but around my more orderly neighborhood, there were places very similar to Campano's photographs. On the way to what was then the town of Hortaleza and the surrounding area of the La Uva neighborhood, there were many tile-roofed houses lined up along dirt streets, which turned to mud when it rained.
Although I lived on a properly paved street, on my way to and from school we would take detours through those fields of thistles and poppies, pine forests, and olive groves, where in summer we would see flocks of sheep passing by.
I know that only two dozen pine trees remain of the pine forest in a roundabout, and our playground is now occupied by two streets and many buildings; it's no wonder, since more than half a century has passed.
What remains is the plaza where we played marbles and tag, and the memories.
A big hug to my dear @enraizar.
Un abrazo fuerte mi estimado @enraizar.
Good afternoon @felixmarranz. I remember perfectly what the Barrio de la Uva and the then town of Hortaleza were like. As I remember the name of the shepherd who drove his flock very close to where we played every day.
I ended the text in an open way because I also believe that Madrid still lives, with new forms. I don't know if it is the disenchantment of age, but I share with you the idea that it persists with less hope of progress.
I thank you very much for the testimony you leave here. As written: this post is not just any post for me.
A very big hug.
The fact that this dedication was expected does not detract from his surprise. I love it from the first to the last letter, which I can only share. But the photographs… omg, they are a perfect chronicle of what were the beginnings of the flood neighbourhoods. I live in one of them and I am sure that, although it is much smaller than those in Madrid, I am sure that it did not lack poppies or thistle flowers at the time.
I liked it very much, it's a wonderful exhibition. Thank you so much! ❤️
Good evening, Paloma. I'm not surprised you liked Javier Campano's images; it's a collection of great photographs.
A self-taught photographer, one day he decided to portray life on the outskirts, and today his work takes us on a journey through time.
I'm also not surprised by what you told me about Zaragoza. Migration from the countryside to the city was a phenomenon that occurred throughout the peninsula, with all its ups and downs.
And I'm not going to say goodbye (with a see you soon) without thanking you for accompanying me on this beautiful journey through Hive.
A big hug. 😘🤗
Están lindas sus fotos, me gustó la del burro, jjeee nunca me montado en una carreta con un burro🥴
!LADY
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Yo tampoco he montado en una carreta con un burro... 😄
Muchas gracias por la visita y el comentario. 🤗
Hermosas fotografías, el artista logró captar en imágenes la realidad y eso es muy artístico. Un recorrido de lujo.
Saludos caballero
!LADY
!HUG
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Si, el artista captó la realidad en la que crecí. Y no puedo estar más de acuerdo:
Un abrazo muy grande, Yolernis.
Buenas noches @enraizar, el trabajo de Campano ha sido el de atestiguar una época que como todas tuvo sus luces y sus sombras. Así mismo, tú estás siendo testigo de esta época actual con tu teléfono móvil. No importa el dispositivo, es el valor que le damos al trabajo de ser testigos, de contar. Porque mañana la realidad seguramente será bien distinta. Por eso la fotografía como documento histórico, social y cultural es tan importante. Yo nací en 1980 y no tenía ni remota idea de esto que pasó, pero gracias a él y a otros que se animaron a contarlo lo puedo vivir ahora. Esta expo es una joya e imagino que pasar un rato en silencio frente a tan interesantes fotografías te trajo muchos recuerdos.
Hasta mañana y un abrazo lleno de luz.
Buenos días @nanixxx, no te equivocas con lo imaginado. Estuve varias veces en la exposición, además coincidió en el tiempo con la de Jano (el cartelista). La Fábrica El Águila, es el edificio de una antigua fábrica de cerveza ahora centro cultural. Así que durante varios días, pasaba de una exposición a otra y viceversa.
Las dos exposiciones aludían a mi niñez de forma diferente. La de Jano a través del cine y la de Campano por su retrato del Barrio. Por lo que las dos me tocaron de forma distinta. NO voy a extenderme en ésto, ya está escrito.
Y tienes mucha razón, tuvimos la suerte que hubo un Campano que recogió un momento y lo inmortalizó. Otro pequeño milagro.
Lo mismo que dices de Campano, es obligado decirlo de ti. Tus fotografías callejeras son otro pequeño milagro.
Aquí dejo mi respuesta relexión. Por aquí anda el clima lluvioso y es de noche...
Un abrazo lleno de luz, de vuelta.
Acá te dejo este apoyo en agradecimiento de Bokura no Digital World
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Muchas gracias @parauri, y a todo el eqipo de Bokura no Digital World.
Good day, Mr. @enraizar
What a beautiful exhibition! How wonderful that you were able to attend the event.
What beautiful memories you have of your childhood living in that lovely city where you grew up.
I love the street photography; it's gorgeous.
Have a wonderful day!
Good afternoon @miprimerconcurso, in addition to being a very intelligent girl, I tell you today that you have very good taste in art.
Thank you very much for your comment.
I also wish you a very nice day.
Hello dear friend @enraizar, how are you?
What a beautiful dedication! Our friend palomap3 will surely appreciate this exhibition.
I love these kinds of photographs, when the artist reveals the reality of the city at that moment, seen through the lens of their camera.
These photographs hold so much history!
Thank you so much, dear friend, for sharing these nostalgic photographs.
Have a wonderful day!
Good afternoon @jlufer, you are not wrong when you point out that these photographs have a lot of history, that of two generations of Madrid residents. And as you also say, they are full of nostalgia.
Paloma liked the exhibition, there is also in this exhibition an echo of the history of Zaragoza, as of so many Spanish cities.
I am very grateful that you have seen the value of the exhibition. As you see, we both share pride in our roots
A very big hug.