Wednesday, January 17, 2024 at 10:50 a.m
Madrid – Fascinated by the beauty and unique character of Essaouira, the Spanish journalist and writer Iban Gorriti dedicated a stunning exhibition of photographs to this Atlantic city, at the Photomuseum, reference of photography and cinematography in the Basque Country.
The exhibition entitled “Essaouira – Haize Uria” (Essaouira – City of the Wind), open to the public from January 16 to February 18, takes visitors on a visual journey through the last two decades of the artist’s life. A Spaniard in Morocco.
The exhibition consists of two parts. The first presents a series of twelve black-and-white portraits of people originally from the High Atlas, including the author’s own children, who form an emotional bridge between their Basque identity and Amazigh culture.
The second part includes twenty photographs representing Gorriti’s twenty years of experience in Morocco, printed on special paper with a unique texture.
With this exhibition, Gorriti seeks to create her own universe in her photographs, with a common aesthetic and a sense of nostalgia that evokes past and present trips to Morocco.
The pictures, taken mostly in open natural spaces that bear witness to this personal journey over the years, are large format in black and white, on which the author prints color textures on the background to evoke dream situations.
Most of the photographs represent urban and natural environments where anonymous natives coexist, transient protagonists who acquire lasting value.
Through these images and their processing, we can see the author’s passion for recording moments in which the language of the landscape, observation and the human ability to abstract in thought or strengthen communication ties and brotherhood are valued.
This retrospective shows Gorriti’s gratitude and admiration for the townspeople and their generosity, which from the very beginning broke down language and cultural barriers.
“In this city of the world where we are separated by deserts, sea and land, there is much more that unites us. This is the essence of this lovingly designed exhibition, which we will take with us as a review after our visit”, the Spanish artist points out in the exhibition’s presentation note.
“Essaouira is a city where the trade winds blow over the beaches and where the sky is clear and calm, its inhabitants indulge in the pleasure of daily conversation by the harbor and the embrace of the Atlantic Ocean. Seagulls fly over the walls of the medina and watch the horizon while passers-by walk through the streets filled with the unique smell of the coast and saltpeter. Time seems to pass more slowly, inviting us to enjoy the core of this coastal enclave and, above all, the warmth of those who open their doors to their neighbors and visitors without expecting anything in return,” writes Gorriti.
