Manuel Cohen photographed the streets of Tortosa, Catalonia, for three years. In this forgotten city where buildings collapse daily without local politicians reacting, the French photographer wanted to symbolize absence. He goes through the places methodically and then superimposes two shots which, together, tell a story. By creating new perspectives, new lines and with new colors, Manuel Cohen confronts us with the lack and the concept of time.
“Absence in general affects me a lot, not just that of people. The absence of what existed and which is no longer in front of what is still there, but with which you cannot interact. In these empty houses, I feel the life of the people who lived, their happiness and their loss, I see their footprints and what they have left. I stop, I observe; I can go back in time and communicate with the past. It’s important, it’s the key to building the future. And photography is a wonderful tool to capture it. ”
Manuel Cohen
Manuel Cohen : Ausencia
from January 25 to February 22, 2020
Galerie XII Paris
10 et 14, rue des Jardins Saint-Paul
75004 Paris
