TALES OF LIQUERIQUE
::All of this repeats day after day in an unchanging way, yet at the same time, it is different in every moment.::
There are areas in many cities that are like a microcosm. We are at La Punta de Liquerique, on Gijón Dock.
Here, they coexist, blended with the taste of salt air:
...tourists who admire the novelty alongside locals who, in an endless loop, take their daily stroll, day after day...
...couples who share the end of the day and dazzled by the colors of the horizon, take a selfie...
...friends who share some laughs, enjoying their cider and rose days, with the sea in the background...
...dogs trying to keep up with their owners' pace while stubbornly sniffing whatever catches their interest...
...mothers who stroll and give their children a snack...
..characters with umbrellas or hats (photographers get it)...
...boys in the age of recklessness and daring, enjoying endless summer afternoons in the water...
...fog that seeps into your bones and waves that drench you by surprise...
...solitary beings who simply listen to the sea and let themselves be caressed by the last rays of sun...
...shadows and silhouettes twisting and stretching, resisting fading away...
...photographers who, in addition to observing all of the above, try to photograph it...
..other photographers who, in an impossible pirouette, photograph the photographers...
All of this repeats day after day in an unchanging way, yet at the same time, it is different in every moment.
Loves that are born... nostalgic farewells to those who have gone... life passing by.
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION
“Tales of Liquerique” is the first exhibition where both photographers, Carlos Conde and Mónica Riveiro, collaborate together.
Mónica has been involved in photography since she was 18 years old. She has been a professional photographer since 2000, primarily working in social and portrait photography in her own studio. Beyond her professional endeavors, her personal projects take place on the streets. She uses dynamic and evocative black and white photography to express emotions. Backlit scenes, mysterious solitary silhouettes, and extreme black and white are the main characteristics of the aesthetic in her images.
Carlos worked as a civil servant, but his true passion is photography. In recent years, he has used urban photography as a means of artistic expression, often using wide-angle lenses to get close to people.
This is where their paths crossed.
This exhibition focuses on urban spaces as a microcosm where people escape from everyday life, immersed in their thoughts, gazing at the horizon, and listening to the murmur of the sea.
These 45 selected images for the exhibition share a common story: old age, loneliness, evening strolls, leisure, friendship, and family. One of these urban spaces is "Punta de Liquerique."
Everyday life flows on this dock in the city of Gijón in northern Spain. Every day brings new stories, in addition to the old ones. Two photographers invent stories and end up becoming part of them.
First separately, but eventually by chance, they come together in the same project.
They construct stories from two different perspectives, and each viewer has to fill them with life. There are two codes at play: intense black and white on one hand and, on the other, a wide range of grays. Two different ways to create atmospheres for their characters.
The two photographs that open the exhibition are the crossroads of the narrative: they are very similar, yet at the same time, they are polar opposites. One has a dramatic look, with high contrasts and surrounded by "negative space"; the other shows the main character surrounded by "positive space" and bathed in light.
