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The Spanish Civil War for a photojournalist is a key moment
because it can be said that photojournalism
reached its peak during the Civil War.
Actually, we nourish ourselves on this tradition,
the photo-journalistic tradition that was restored in those moments
through legendary photographers such as Robert Capa,
or locals such as “Agustí Centelles” and “Mayo Brothers”, etc.
That is, until that time, very heavy equipment was used and, well,
beginning in the 20s, cameras were made smaller and less heavy,
which allowed some professionals to operate with much more agility,
setting the basis for what we now know as modern photojournalism
in the environment of the Spanish Civil War.
I believe it is important that all of those photographers documented
the struggles on the front, producing many photos
that are already mythical to all of us
and that stay in our memory, such as "Portrait of the militiaman",
which today is seen as questionable,
but is a photo that, along with many others,
documented life in the army, etc.
As a matter of fact, there were many other events
that we are just now confronting;
thousands, tens of thousands of murders that occurred in Spain,
which happened, but were not witnessed
by the cameras of those photographers.
Those events took place in silence, during the night, treturously.
Above all, trying to hide what can be considered as genuine
"Crimes against Humanity”.
Later, we discovered what happened.
The Dictatorship, we can say, continued with that tremendous idea
of forgetting and repression of all of those victims.
Today, 70 years after the Spanish Civil War has ended
and the exhumation of the war's mass graves has been authorized,
the cameras that those photographers could not use are now being used
in the exhumations and, let's say, this particular circle
of photojournalism is closed with regard to the Spanish Civil War.
For someone like me who has spent so many years on this topic,
let's say that to document the job of an exhumation of mass graves
from the Spanish Civil War is a really important thing.
Answering the question that you asked me before,
it is not only, let's say, to prove what was done
and could not be seen and was not possible to document,
but also attempt to document step by step what is being done now.
This, I think, is a very important task.
Trying to leave a clear testimony of what it is like working in the grave,
what it is like working in laboratories,
what is going on around the exhumations.
To have documentation of, perhaps with many years of delay,
the crimes that occurred with the will to forget.
In this context, I believe that documentary photography is working,
let's say, in an almost wild way.
I do not think that photography should have a mission,
but I believe it has to be useful in some way.
As I said before,
I think its usefulness must be to explain what is happening.
What is happening from the moment that bones appear,
explaining how the teams work,
what kinds of people come to visit the grave,
explain one by one the bones that appear, each gesture,
and also the work at the laboratories
when the work at the graves is finished.
Explain and describe the environment because we would like
to place on record what is being done now 75 years after the murders.