Portrait in the barrio

The story of a photograph is a kaleidoscope of stories and life

The man you see pictured here has a shop inside the local market in a popular neighborhood near here.

He repares electronic devices, but in the shop he also has some sweets for sale and books, several books, put together a bit, every now and then my wife buys him some. Always kind when he sees us we stop for a while to chat. Often it is the tales of his past in the ranks of the Zapatistas that come out. Tales of political militancy and passion, of friendship and brotherhood.

And this is how the simple request to make a portrait becomes something that is a consequence of the chat. Not a portrait as an end in itself but something that is generated by a previous knowledge. Until the other day, in fact, I had never photographed it. A difficult portrait in the twilight of the place, very dark. A portrait that is far from perfect. But it is portrayed alive, of conscience and knowledge. Deep humanist. Just the way I like it.