Woman Crush Wednesday: Candy Lopesino
The Iberians, LGTBI pride festival, Madrid, Spain © Candy Lopesino
What inspired you to start photographing and what photographers continue to inspire you?
I started painting in oil. One day I discovered a camera that my father bought, and I started photographing my sisters. From there, I discovered photography.
The first time I saw the black-and-white image appear in the developing tank, I knew that photographing was what I wanted to do for a lifetime. It is a means that helps me discover the world around me, to know myself and to express myself. Through my work, I manage to unite two of my passions, photography and traveling. Creating is a vital need for me.
I am self-taught in photography. My knowledge has been acquired through trial and failure.
My way of seeing the world has been influenced by great photographers such as Edward S. Curtis, Julia Margaret Cameron, August Sander, Diane Arbus, Mary Ellen Mark, Henri Cartier-Bresson, W. Eugene Smith, Robert Frank and William Klein.
There was a first photography exhibition that made a huge impact on me. They were the portraits that Edward Sheriff Curtis had made of the North American Indians, to which he had dedicated 30 years of his life. The portraits were impressive, and the time spent on the project blew me away. I left the showroom wanting to do a long-term project.
The Iberians, El Toro de Carnaval, Romanones, Spain © Candy Lopesino
The Iberians, Alhambra in Granada, Spain, the sun creates shadows and tourists become silhouettes © Candy Lopesino
These photographs are from your ongoing series THE IBERIANS, where you photograph the people of the Iberian Peninsula. Can you tell us a bit about the culture, traditions, people and places in these photographs?
The Iberian Peninsula is the westernmost part of mainland Europe, a piece of land almost entirely surrounded by water. The peninsula is home to Spain and Portugal, two geographically united countries separated by an invisible border.
THE IBERIANS is an essay about my travels through this territory, visually narrating the things that happen while wandering around Iberia. The knowledge of a specific territory gives depth and meaning to my project. My work is a continuous journey through Spain and Portugal.
I explore the concepts of territory, border, light, memory and identity through observation. I rediscover the common places, their people, their culture, their realities circumscribed to a geography. In short, I explore the human condition.
The Iberians, Release of wild cows by the Tagus in Spain © Candy Lopesino
Is there a reason why these photographs are all in black and white?
With black-and-white photography I can convey emotions. By not being distracted by color, I focus more on people's expressions and on the shapes, lines and composition of the scenes I photograph. I can better convey what I want to say.
Describe your creative process in one word.
Observational.
The Iberians, Manueline window and cobbled street, Manueline architectural style, Portuguese Late Gothic © Candy Lopesino
If you could teach a one-hour class on anything, what would it be?
How I make my photo collages by hand with scissors, glue, and old papers, photos, and postcards.
What was the last book you read or film you saw that inspired you?
The film Nostalgia for the Light by Patricio Guzmán.
The Iberians, The difficulty of buying daily bread in the emptied Iberia © Candy Lopesino
