this was our second visit to barcelona, first time on our own without the children, and the city was different. we had a chance to visit sites that weren't defined as "attractions". it wasn't a race from one "extraordinary" place to another. it was a stroll in the city, allowing the atmosphere to sink in, the people to register in our conciousness, and a chance for us to enjoy all barcelona has to offer.

sangria, barcelona, september 2008

barcelona, september 2008

the next morning we picked up a rented car and started out north along the costa brava. the weather was beautiful and landscapes fantastic. we stopped at roses for lunch and instead of choosing a restaurant on the tourist packed waterfront, we walked into the inner streets through narrow alleys, looking for a place where the "native catalans" eat.

native catalan, roses, september 2008

and we found it!

calamari deep fried with lemon - no bullshit, roses, september 2008

crossing into france we were stopped by french police at what looked like an improvised checkpoint. a short "good morning" in english rewarded us with "you can go!"

isn't it great when you can't speak the local language and the locals don't want to make the effort to speak yours?!

france/spain border crossing, costa brava, september 2008

we made a few more stops along the way and finally arrived to our hotel in perpignan.

perpignan is an interesting city! it's much larger than i thought but we constrained our wandering to the old city where visa pour l'image was taking place. narrow streets and alleys, colorful buildings, and intersting people in what our hotel owner called the gypsy quarter.

gypsy quarter, perpignan, september 2008

the 2nd week of visa is quiet. very quiet! no crowds at exhibitions. almost no restaurants open after 19:00. perpignan in the evening is a ghost town. we mentioned this to our hotel owner. he said the french worked hard all day, were very tired, and went to bed early. i'm not surprised they get so tired speaking french all day!

visa exhibitions were very interesting! most of them located in old buildings in perpignan, cracked walls, pealing paint, arched halls - what an atmosphere!

i saw many familiar works by ziv koren, menachem kahana and brent stirton in the agency french press 20-year exhibition and canon's ambassadors exhibition. but there were also new findings.

ziv koren - canon ambassador, perpignan, september 2008

i was not previously familiar with the work of paula bronstein but found her project of modern day afghanistan (2001-2008), displayed at couvent sainte claire, amazing! not only is it an excellent job of photojournalism, telling a story, but each photo on its own is worthy of artistic merit. graphically captivating images, even if you don't read the captions and you're not too sure what it is you are viewing. much like the style of brent stirton in this regard - almost as though she directs her photos and journalism. 

afghanistan - a fragile peace, perpignan, september 2008

and on the other hand, axelle de russe's "china - the return of the concubine", displayed in castillet. the photos are good but not breathtaking - not because de russe didn't do a good job, but because the subject matter has its limitations. but her photojournalism is facsinating! viewing the photos and reading the captions i found  myself captivated by very interesting journalism - a strong story very well told!

the roots of heaven - michael nichols, perpignan, september 2008

pierre gonnord's "the portrait test" at eglise des dominicains has a striking presence! a small number of huge portraits of extraordinary quality and character portraying the gypsy community of perpignan. i find it difficult to connect gonnord's work to journalism but enjoyed viewing the photos non the less.

the portrait test - pierre gonnord, perpignan, september 2008

for a day out we drove to collioure. what a beautiful mediterranean town! and it was market day!

spices in collioure, september 2008

baskets in collioure, september 2008

the bay, collioure, september 2008

monochromatic church, collioure, september 2008

collioure, september 2008

two stops on the way back to el prat (barcelona intl' airport). abbaye de fontfroide, recommended by father josep over gmail chat on wifi in our perpignan hotel.

abbaye de fontfroide, narbonne france, september 2008

abbaye de fontfroide, narbonne france, september 2008

abbaye de fontfroide, narbonne france, september 2008

and les gorges de la fou

bottom line - an educational photographic experience, a fantastic vacation and lovely time spent with my friend and partner in life!

nir

Listen to the NPR interview here.

Read the National Geographic story here.

NatGeo photographer Brent Stirton was interviewed yesterday by Terry Gross on NPR's program, "Fresh Air." It's a compelling interview, full of information you probably didn't know about the culprit behind the murders of the Rugendo family of gorillas.

You can read an introduction to the story and listen to the entire interview on NPR's Web site. There are some photos and related stories on that page, as well. Please take a few moments to write to NPR about the interview and thank Terry Gross for bringing the murders and the arrest of Virunga National Park's director for planning the killings. You can read the Gorilla Protection blog for details on the ongoing battle against the charcoal mafia by rangers who will die to protect the gorillas and their habitat.

s.

Nota en Español: http://www.nationalgeographic.com.es/index.jsp

Article in English: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/07/virunga/jenkins-text

Articulo completo en la edición de Julio 2008 de National Geographic

¿Quién mató a los gorilas de Virunga?

PÁG. 2 / JULIO 2008

El crimen acosa al parque nacional más antiguo de África. La lucha por los recursos, la corrupción y la guerra entre milicias rivales y el ejército congoleño amenazan a la población de gorilas de montaña. Por Mark Jenkins; fotografías de Brent Stirton

Esperaron a que anocheciera. El 22 de julio del año pasado unos desconocidos se agazapaban en el bosque, listos para ejecutar a una familia de gorilas. Ocultos en una ladera del volcán Mikeno, en el este de la República Democrática del Congo, los asesinos, provistos de armas automáticas, habían rastreado a los 12 miembros de la familia de Rugendo, conocida por los turistas y muy querida por los guardabosques del Parque Nacional Virunga. El patriarca de esta familia de gorilas, un espalda plateada de 225 kilos llamado Senkwekwe, tal vez percibió que los atacantes estaban cerca, tal vez frunció la nariz al sentir el desagradable olor, pero no debió de alarmarse. Había visto a miles de personas y estaba acostumbrado a aceptar su proximidad como algo irritante pero inevitable. La familia de Rugendo (el anterior líder) estaba tan habituada a los humanos, que a veces invadía los maizales para darse un atracón, lo que enfurecía a los agricultores. Los guardabosques del cercano puesto de Bukima dijeron haber oído disparos esa noche a las ocho. A la mañana siguiente, una patrulla encontró a tres gorilas hembras muertas a tiros: Mburanumwe, Neza y Safari, y a la cría de esta última, paralizada por el miedo, a escasa distancia. Al día siguiente se halló el cadáver de Senkwekwe, con el pecho destrozado. Tres semanas después apareció el cuerpo de otra hembra del grupo, Macibiri, y su cría se dio por muerta. Apenas un mes antes fueron atacadas dos hembras y una cría de otro grupo de gorilas. Los guardabosques encontraron a una de las hembras ejecutada de un tiro en la nuca, y a su cría, aún viva, agarrada al pecho de su madre. La otra hembra nunca apareció. (Lea el artículo completo en la revista)

VIDEO LINK: http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1287043068/bctid1312371912

Brent holds a degree in Journalism from his native South Africa and photographs to visually interpret a story, often working in tandem with journalists from the world’s leading publications. He works on a regular basis for the Global Business Coalition against Aids and The Global Fund against Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria. He also works in the field for sustainability for WWF, The World Wide Fund for Nature, shooting global campaigns on the relationship between people and their environments. He recently also began working for the Ford Foundation and the Clinton Foundation. In the last 2 years he works regularly with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and Anderson Cooper, compiling stills documentaries on topical news events which are then voiced over and aired.

Thoughts
Another photojournalist thats not afraid to be on the front lines. His use of wide angle lenses is a nice touch to his work. Also liked his perspective on things, for example contrary to a lot of photojournalists he doesn't focus on the face of the subjct to try to convey the story. Instead most of his photos consists of a wide view and a moderate amount of background. I think this method works becuase the backdrop/environment adds to the story.

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http://www.brentstirton.com/

I am a great fan of World Press Photo and this weekend, the winners of 2008 have been announced. Again, amazing photo's with even more remarkable stories were selected, which all can be seen on the official World Press Photo website. I posted my three favourites here, although I could have easily posted many more (I am particularly fond of the nature section as well). By clicking on the photos I posted here, you can find out the story behind them and about their photographers. I can't wait to see the exhibition that starts in the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam on April 29. Excited about it and would like to see if the exhibition is coming to a place near you? Check this.