The activity, which has already completed its capacity, will be held at the IEA headquarters with two sessions scheduled for 8:00 PM and 9:00 PM. More theatricalized visits of this exhibition are planned after the summer.
The Institute of Almeriense Studies (IEA), part of the Provincial Council of Almería, has been dedicated since 1980 to promoting culture and knowledge of the province in areas such as history, science, art, and popular traditions. Its headquarters, a 19th-century building in the historic center of the capital, is the hub for activities, exhibitions, and projects designed to make Almerian identity accessible to the public in a simple and attractive way.
In 2011, the IEA acquired reproductions of the emblematic photographic series 'La Chanca: Todo un barrio' by the Almerian photographer Carlos Pérez Siquier. After touring various municipalities in the province, the exhibition now features a permanent display at the IEA headquarters.
Carlos Pérez Siquier (1930–2021) is a prominent figure in Spanish photography, known for his close, human perspective deeply connected to Almería. He began photographing the La Chanca neighborhood in 1956, initially in black and white, and later, between 1962 and 1965, explored new ways of viewing the reality of the neighborhood and its people with his color series.
The photographer himself explained his intention: “I tried to seek the essential, to exalt those people.” The exhibition consists of thirty color photographs, divided into two series. The first series, with 16 images, portrays the life and architecture of the neighborhood, highlighting the square format and the sensitivity towards the people depicted. The second series, comprising 14 photographs, focuses on the walls of old houses, exploring textures and colors that seemed to tell their own stories.
Pérez Siquier's personal work began in the 1950s, when he created his first photographic series in the humble Almerian neighborhood of La Chanca. His anthropological interest captured the customs, landscapes, and belongings of its inhabitants, reflecting the dignity of poverty in austere black and white.
Between 1956 and 1963, he co-directed the Almerian Photographic Group (AFAL) with José María Artero García, whose magazine showcased the work and concerns of a group of young photographers.
After the AFAL period, Pérez Siquier changed format and medium, adopting color. He continued his work as a bank employee and, determined to stay in Almería away from editorial and press centers, he worked as a freelance agent for the Spanish Ministry of Tourism from 1965 onwards. He took advantage of these excursions along the coast to carry out this work and simultaneously captured images for his series 'La playa' (The Beach), which repositioned him at the forefront of photographic innovation twenty years later.
Following the exhibition 'Pérez Siquier', curated by Laura Terré for the La Caixa Foundation, his activity became incessant. In his subsequent series, 'Color del Sur' (Color of the South), his characteristic style emerged: saturated color, fragmented selection of reality, few elements, compositional laws, irony, surreal humor, and play with human perception.
