Photographer #407: Francisco Reina

Francisco Reina, 1979, Spain, is a politically and socially-engaged conceptual photographer based in The Netherlands. In his project The Art of Power he meticulously manipulated architectural elements that depict political institutions, making them into impenetrable structures. We see the  ruling institutions of today as rational enterprises who's interest should be to further the interest of their societies as a whole. Francisco strongly believes that this notion is not always rooted in reality and that the leaders of our world are gradually becoming an elite class primarily concerned with defending its own interests. The series called Strauss' Legacy focuses on "the so-called neoconservatives and the way in which their presence in the American presidential administration on September 11, 2001 shaped events."  He created images that through a conceptual way takes a close look at "the role of multinational corporations in a conflict which began under the name "Operation Enduring Freedom" and turned into a perfect market niche for multi-million dollar earnings." His work has been exhibited mainly in Spain, but also in The Netherlands and New York. The following images come from the series The Art of Power, Strauss' Legacy and The Silent Enigma.

Website: www.franciscoreina.com

Photographer #406: Txema Yeste

Txema Yeste, 1972, Spain, is a fashion photographer based in Barcelona, Spain. His career started as a reporter after completing his photographic studies in Barcelona and Birmingham. He was traveling the world shooting images for newspapers like El Pais. He sees this period as very helpful for the photography he does today. His editorial fashion shoots have a narrative quality, build up of story-telling images. This is reflected in the titles given to the series as Spy in Nice, A Summer Waisting or Beyond Love and Evil. Txema is known for his sophisticated style, his experimentations, surrealism and graphic expression. His work has appeared in numerous magazines as Harper's Bazaar, V Magazine and Vogue. Amongst his commercial clients are major brands as Lacoste, Levi's and Nike. The following images come from various different shoots.

Website: www.txemayeste.es

Photographer #400: Moises Saman

Moises Saman, Spain, 1974, Spain, is a very productive photojournalist based in New York City. He studied Communications and Sociology at California State University. Between 2000 and 2007 he worked as a staff photographer at the New York Newsday before going freelance in late 2007. For his photographic work he has traveled to countries as Pakistan, Nepal, Cuba, Lebanon and El Salvador to name a few. In his extensive portfolio we find stories that cover the earthquake aftermath in Haiti, Afghan boys who enter Europe fleeing from poverty and violence in their home-country, problems with drug cartels in Peru, the conflict in Congo that has cost the lifes of millions as well as multiple stories in Iraq focusing on an intense drought, the war and the complexities of the conflict by looking at the three major cities. He also concentrated on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the Mara Salvatrucha gang in El Salvador. He released the books Afghanistan: Broken Promise (2007) and This is War (2004) as well as providing the images for the book Howard Zinn: Just War. In 2010 he became a Magnum Photos nominee. The following images come from the series Rivers of Coca, Peru 2009, The Lost Boys of Afghanistan. Greece 2009 and La Vida por las Maras 2007.

Website: www.moisessaman.com

Photographer #365: Ana Casas Broda

Ana Casas Broda, 1965, Spain, has been living in Mexico since she was eight years old. Her long-term projects are intense and personal. Her latest body of work is Kinderwunsch, a complex and personal set of images dealing with maternity. She spent five years submitting herself to fertility treatments before she got her first son. When she entered the same process a second time she decided to capture the entire process, the treatments, the pregnancy, birth, bodily contact, affection, feeding and other aspects of the experience. As the project progressed, it has become more complex. With her sons she carries out actions that derive from the childrens minds or from her fantasies. In 2000 she released the book Album, a photographic project that is built on the relationship between her grandmother and herself. It includes images from her childhood to photographs of the last years of her grandmother. The book deals with themes as memory, cultural and personal inheritance as a way to explore identity. The following images come from the series Kinderwunsch, Diet Journals and Album.

Website: www.anacasasbroda.com

Photographer #354: Xavier Comas

Xavier Comas, 1970, Spain, graduated in 1995 at the Faculty of Fine Arts at Barcelona University. Driven by the passion for travelling and cultural immersion, he left on an adventurous journey to Asia in 2002. He wants to be a visual storyteller by using an intimate, spontaneous photographic approach.  In Thailand he focused on the most southern provinces creating a body of work called Derelict that deals with Thailand's muslim majority and the subject of abandonment. He spend three months living with an ethnic Malay muslim family. His project Tokyo Up, Down is a series of tryptychs taken inside and outside of elevators. The elevators are, according to Xavier; "a showcase for the basic paradox of personal alienation in urban living: the inescapeble physical proximity countered by emotional distance." In the series Pasajero he focused on the commuters in Tokyo's rail system. He takes the position of a beholder creating a photographic exploration of the transit space. The following images come from the series Noe, Tokyo Up, Down and Pasajero.

Website: www.xaviercomas.com

Photographer #330: Fernando Moleres

Fernando Moleres, 1963, Spain, is a socially engaged photojournalist based in Barcelona. He started his working career as a nurse. In the beginning of his photographic career he combined his nursing work with long periods travelling and doing photographic projects. He travels extensively to various countries in Africa, the Middle-East and Asia covering stories on gender inequality, various forms of religion, traditional bathing rituals and juveniles in prison. In 2000 he released Stolen Childhood showing the story of child labour in black and white photographs. In 2009 his monograph about monastic life called Lifes of Devotion came out. For his recent series Juveniles in Prison he was awarded the Daily Life Series award by World Press Photo in 2011. The following images come from the series Juveniles in Prison, Monastic Life and Turkish Baths-Hammam.

Website: www.fernandomoleres.com

Photographer #314: Arnau Blanch Vilageliu

Arnau Blanch Vilageliu, 1983, is a Spanish documentary photographer who lives and works between Spain and Colombia. He studied photography at the Institut d'Estudis Fotografics de Catalunya. He completed a six month internship at WpN in New York and participated at two workshops at ICP in documentary photography. In his hometown Barcelona he delved into the world of sex. It is a search for human identity, exploring a range of people who's lives are dominated by sex. In gritty and dark images he shows us people who might use sex as a way of expression and others who need it as a means of survival. Shadows of Paradise is made in Colombia. Arnau shows us the darkness in a place that might, due to the lucious color of the jungle, look like a paradise at first glance. Arnau's narrative photography is raw and instinctive. The following images come from !SEX!, Shadows of Paradise and Untitled Document.

Website: www.arnaublanch.com

Photographer #297: Eugenio Recuenco

Eugenio Recuenco, 1968, Spain, is a fashion photographer with a unique style and a large and impressive portfolio. His cinematographic and pictorial work is larger than life. Entire sets are build to create his magical and fantastical imagery. The photographs are stylish, visually stunning and his lighting is incredible, often inspired by the great painters of history. Amongst his clients are Diesel, Nina Ricci and L'Oreal. He has also worked with Rammstein and created story-telling images with the German band. His work has appeared in numerous magazines and has been exhibited extensively. It is no surprise that Eugenio also concentrates on film making. The following images come from various shoots.

Website: www.eugeniorecuenco.com

Photographer #256: Txema Salvans

Txema Salvans, Spain, 1971, is a documentary photographer with a special interest in how we humans spend our free time. He enjoys the positive interaction he has with his subjects making it possible for him to get a look at the physical and mental spaces of leisure where everyone is looking for happiness. His series Spanish Hits (De Carretera) is a journey through the Mediterranean coast stopping at the places where entire families enjoy their leisures on a small beach between the sea and concrete. In his series Spanish Roads he focused on the suppliers of leisure. On the outskirts of the city he photographed prostitutes and other suppliers of services by the road in unhabitable spaces that are nonetheless lived in. The following images come from the series Spanish Roads, Spanish Hits and Welcome Aboard.

Website: www.txemasalvans.com

Photographer #236: Álvaro Ybarra Zavala

Álvaro Ybarra Zavala, 1979, Spain, is a photojournalist. In India he photographed HIV/Aids patients, as there are currently 2.27 million people that are HIV+. Despite being the fourth largest economy of the world, India only spends 1% of it's GDP in healthcare. Álvaro has concentrated on difficult stories around the globe, from the Haiti earthquake to the drama of the Burmese people and from armed groups in Venezuela to the war in Darfur. The list of countries he has been to is enormous and most of them are conflict zones. He has released five books, has been published in numerous magazines and has exhibited internationally. The following images come from the stories India, Congo and Afghanistan.

Website: www.alvaroybarra.com & www.reportage-bygettyimages.com

Photographer #231: Chema Madoz

Chema Madoz, 1958, Spain is a photographer with a unique way of looking at objects. By combining or altering everyday objects he creates new worlds and stories. His photography is playful, full of humour and very poetic. At the same time the images by Madoz trigger our brain and confront us in how limited our gaze is when looking at our surroundings. His images are all about imagination and widening our horizon. The images are not digitally manipulated. He has released a vast number of books containing his creations. Chema has exhibited extensively throughout the world and his works are in numerous private and public collections. The following images come from his extensive portfolio.

Website: www.chemamadoz.com

Photographer #207: Pep Bonet

Pep Bonet, 1974, Spain, is a photojournalist who has won various awards throughout the years. He has covered many stories throughout Africa, amongst which are Somalia, Darfur, Angola and Ethiopia. His most known project is Faith in Chaos, an ongoing photo essay on the aftermath of the war in Sierra Leone. Pep also concentrated on HIV/Aids for long periods of time within Africa, but also in India and Honduras. In 2008 he released the book One Goal, a long term project on the Sierra Leone's amputees soccer team. During the civil war in Sierra Leone, amputation was used as a weapon of fear in order to get young men to stop fighting for an opposing side. The following images come from One Goal, Orphans Zwaziland and Somalia 04.

Website: www.pepbonet.com

Photographer #071: Luis Sanchis

Spanish photographer Luis Sanchis, 1964, moved to New York in 1994. He is a fashion and celebrity photographer. He has worked for a large number of clients such as Gucci and Kenzo and worked with people as Kate Moss, Courtney Love and Leonardo Dicaprio. The following photographs come from various shoots.

Website: www.luissanchis.com