Ignacio Pereira, interior architect, publicist, and photographer, was awarded the Best Visual Story Award at PhotoEspaña. Pereira shares his vision of urban loneliness and the power of the individual, which he has captured and transmitted through his renowned series of photographs of emblematic spots of large empty cities.
When and how was the photographer's side of Ignacio Pereira born?
Few photographers start as professional photographers. Artistic photography often arises from different factors. I was professionally dedicated to the world of advertising, but have been surrounded by material related to photography and cinema my entire life.
By chance, in 2014, I started to go out in my spare time to take pictures of Madrid. I am a great lover of urban travel and big cities, but at the same time, I am also a lover of calm and tranquility.
Combining these two concepts, I started to play with them by emptying small spaces where people were usually "in the way". I completed the first photography project in Madrid. A colleague from the advertising studio where I worked gave me an interview with the media, and that's where it all started. My first exhibition was in 2016, and that first report had many media repercussions.
And that's when the travels began...
Yes, seeing that my project was so well received and liked, I went to London to make a second series of photographs. There I photographed Trafalgar Square, the London Bridge, the British Museum, and they were very nice pictures because I personally love London.
After London, I went to Tokyo. It's crazy, an ode to consumerism. In Shibuya, the project was also very nice. Then I went to New York at Times Square, the Brooklyn Bridge, and Central Station. Then to Istanbul, from Istanbul to Rome, and from Rome to Pamplona, where I did a Sanfermines session without people.
What kind of spaces do you prefer to photograph in big cities? What is it that makes you choose a specific place to create one of your works?
It has to be an emblematic point, a very representative and very touristy area where there are always a lot of people. And from there to tell, through photography, the story of the place I have chosen.
In your photos, a person usually appears...
A photograph without anyone means nothing, whereas the person who appears in my photos is the one who gives meaning to everything. If you leave a protagonist who is doing something, going shopping or to college, or a cyclist in a hurry, for example, the photograph really comes to life. It goes from being a still life to a story, to say what I want it to say.
And what is it that you want to transmit through your photographs?
That's kind of the goal: In big cities, we see a lot of people, and we don't see the individuality of each person. We see people moving, hustle and bustle...but if we manage to isolate the story, something attractive remains in narrative photography.
In my photos, I want to convey the loneliness of the big city. You can be surrounded by many people and feel very lonely, and that concept is best understood in New York.
Most of your exhibitions incorporate in their title the word "Solitude", what meaning does this word have for you?
For me, there are two concepts: Chosen solitude is what we know as solitude, which is fantastic. We all need time to be with ourselves. For me, it is very important. I need my time and space to think about my things. Then there is the unchosen solitude that many people suffer from, an imposed solitude, very common in the big cities of the 21st century.
What is the process of elaboration of each of your photographs?
Before traveling, there's a process of studying the place where I'm going. In Shibuya, for example, I spent a month beforehand looking at webcams of the city, making a study of the traffic, the people... Although you can never foresee everything until you travel and arrive at the place, and then you usually find good and bad surprises. I remember once in St. Peter's Square in Rome, they were putting up the Christmas tree, and there was a huge crane, and I couldn't take a photo.
Once there, I can return home with 2,000 photos, which happened to me in Japan, and then I end up with about twenty that I work on.
What are the main technical challenges?
Light is always a challenge. I prefer to photograph on cloudy days. The sun generates changes in light and very marked shadows, making it difficult to balance. I don't take photos in summer. I try to take photos on weekdays at less crowded hours, and always at sunrise or sunset.
What has been the most difficult photo and why?
Without a doubt, the Trevi Fountain in Rome. It is very boxed in, and it was quite a technical challenge to get, with a wide angle, to show the grandeur of the monument itself, apart from the fact that it is always crowded with people.
Which photo are you most fond of?
One of Times Square. I was in New York for two weeks, and every day I went there, but I couldn't find the time, or the right person for the photo, and at the last moment, everything came together just the way I wanted. I published it, it appeared in a TV report, and it turned out that the "protagonist" that I left in the photo recognized himself in it. It was a man from Malasaña who contacted me through Instagram and told me: "Hey, you won't believe it but the one in the Times Square photo is me..." I met him and gave him the photo as a gift. That's why I would say that I'm so fond of this photo, because of the story behind it.
This was the most complicated photo for Ignacio Pereira. The photographer says it was a technical challenge to get, with a wide-angle lens, to show the grandeur of the iconic Trevi Fountain in Rome and do it without people.
When you take a picture of a crowded place and then imagine it completely empty, what do you look at?
Well, I would say that over time, I have developed the ability to imagine a crowded space as empty. I mentally erase everything and I imagine that truck passing by, that couple kissing, or the delivery guy... I have that vision in my head, and I imagine a bit what the photo might look like when I take it and what story it can tell.
When I travel, once I have the pictures of the most emblematic places, I also take pictures of secondary places that are the ones I like the most, but that have fewer repercussions and that I keep for myself, or photos with a tighter framing that tell more personal stories.
You often travel alone. What is the best thing about this type of travel?
I travel alone whenever I can, and I find it wonderful to do so. I can travel at my own pace and have my time to myself. I would recommend everyone to travel alone, because when you do it, it's very helpful to get to know yourself, to miss, and to be missed. Once you get past the big barrier of a long trip alone, which is what happened to me in New York, there is no going back.
And the message of your photographs will remain the same?
The truth is that I would like to make a series of photographs as a tribute. To go from the loneliness of the big cities to the solidarity that we have been seeing, starting with the people who have stayed at home, to bring a different view, and see how it evolves.
Madrid's Gran Via, Times Square, Shibuya crossing... what will be your next photograph?
I want to go to Paris in November, and then to Berlin, and also to Rio de Janeiro, and Mexico.
