In the early nineteen fifties, in Spain there began to be the development of a photography inspired by the international tendencies of neo-realist documentary and humanist reportage. Of particular note within this area was the rich activity carried out by the Afal group, a photography collective set up around the magazine of the same name, directed by José María Artero and Carlos Pérez Siquier between 1956 and 1963.
Thanks to the extending of the holdings of Museo Reina Sofía to include the presence of the protagonists of this generation and to the recent donation made by Pérez Siquier, this showing is presenting a selection that deeply explores the Afal group and deals with the internationalisation of the photographers of that period, analysing their several different interchanges with other collectives.
On the other hand, and due to a donation from his heirs, the figure of Leonardo Cantero is highlighted, along with his participation in the exhibition Eleven Spanish Photographers in Paris (1962).