Sergio Larrain. El vagabundo de Valparaíso

×

Expand

Image courtesy of Foto Colectania

Sergio Larrain (1931–2012) was a singular figure in twentieth-century photography. A member of Magnum Photos, he developed a deeply personal body of work shaped by a free, poetic and enigmatic approach to street photography. Through the use of shadows, reflections and unconventional framing, Larrain transformed everyday scenes into images of striking visual and emotional intensity, where human presence and urban solitude occupy a central role.

Larrain began taking photographs in the early 1950s and achieved early recognition. In 1959, Henri Cartier-Bresson invited him to join Magnum Photos, marking the beginning of an intense period of travels and assignments throughout Europe and the Americas. However, at the height of his professional career, he chose to step away from photography in search of a way of life more aligned with his personal and spiritual concerns. Rather than closing his career, this decision has become an essential element in the contemporary understanding of his work.

The exhibition at Foto Colectania brings together nearly 80 photographs taken in Chile, with particular emphasis on the Valparaíso series, the artist’s most extensive and celebrated project. Developed between the late 1950s and the mid-1960s, this series explores the Chilean port city through its hills, stairways, shadows and inhabitants, shaping an urban landscape experienced from proximity and lived experience. The project culminated in the book Valparaíso, published in 1991 with a text by Pablo Neruda, and has since become a key reference in the history of Photobooks.

For more art events check our online events calendar.