As the closing event in the centenary year of the birth of Carles Fontserè (Barcelona, 1916 - Porqueres, 2007), the Fundació Vila Casas is putting on the photographic exhibition Relato cartográfico to round off the celebrations of a centenary which has concentrated on the importance of Carles Fontserè as a photojournalist. With a long career spanning such different disciplines as photography, painting, poster design, stage design, drawing, and writing, Fontserè was known early on as a poster artist during the Spanish civil war. In 1963, after time spent in France, Mexico and New York, Fontserè travelled to Europe, specifically cities with a long tradition of being documented such as Roma, Paris and London, with the aim of publishing, as was common at the time, photobooks. However, this ambitious project came to nothing since Fontserè was unable to break into the circle of established writers, photographers and editors in Spain.
The exhibition Relato cartográfico, curated by Natàlia Chocarro and Mercè Vila, presents a selection of photographs documenting the city of London during a time of social flux. Fontserè’s photographs combine what he terms “human geography” with iconic architecture in the city, resulting in a testimony to London at a time when it was becoming a cultural centre for youth, fashion and modernity. Relato cartográfico is a chance for us to tread the pavements of London with the Palace of Westminster, Soho and Piccadilly Circus as a backdrop to a generation marked by the swinging sixties, The Beatles and the Rolling Stones.
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