Steidlville

What could the cheerful woman in the middle of a crowd be looking for in that coffin? And what kind of bishop is that with the naked beauty on his cape? Cristóbal Hara’s photographs show an undiscovered Spain — far from its beautiful beaches and urban centers — with its ordinary people and animals and its very particular peculiarities. Using the techniques of straight reportage photography, they sometimes report facts which are stranger than fiction. At processions and markets, funerals and bullfights or simply on the street, Hara positions his camera to capture something from the hustle and bustle of the provinces. The photographs in An Imaginary Spaniard tell of joy, sorrow, loneliness and companionship and create their own fairy-tale world from a combination of sadness and enchantment.