1 of 2
Photog
2 of 2
photog 2
I was born in Barcelona of a Canadian father and a Catalan mother. My parents bought me a camera when I was 10. At the age of 13 I had my first assignment to take the school photos on a trip to Ibiza.
I studied photography in Grisart, where I got a grant for a workshop with Joan Fontcuberta in the Reencontres de la Photographie, Arles, France. I worked for 4 years in advertising as a Location Scout and later on TV commercials and film. I quit and started traveling in 2002... always going back to Barcelona. I traveled the east coast of Australia on my own in a campervan for 6 months. I sailed through Indonesia as part of a delivery crew, filmed video in Alaska, worked steering a commercial fishing boat for salmon. Life is a trip and pushing my limits and exploring new horizons is what really makes me feel alive in a world that, in spite of being cruel, is sometimes also very beautiful.
Barcelona is a live city where the past and the future, Catalan and foreigner, sea and mountains all blend smoothly to give it its unique flair.
I never miss a walk around the old area, where Roman, Gothic, Art Nouveau and modern architecture stand in harmony.
I always avoid the subway at peak time.
A view: Barcelona from Mount Tibidabo. On a clear day you can see the whole city with the Mediterranean Sea.
A building: Plaza de toros la Monumental, Neomudéjar and Byzantine style. I really like the white & blue tiles and those huge “eggs” at the top that remind me of Dalí’s art.
An inspiration: a walk along the Barceloneta to see how we enjoy life at its best: good food, some sport, a glass of wine or a beer, sun, a good chat and a big smile… what else do we need to be happy?
A place to go with friends: definitely the beach. In summer we lie down in the sun and swim, for St. John we make a huge bonfire, at night time we dance on the sand and in winter we sit on a warm blanket and chat while looking at the breaking waves.
On my to-do list: Jump onto one of the Golondrinas, those cute old boats I used to take on special occasions when I was a little girl.
About the cover: Shot in Carrer Petritxol, one of the most charming streets in Barcelona for its story-telling wall tiles. On the top left of the photograph you can see some of these shiny tiles telling us in a rhyming couplet that Moratín, the 18th century dramatist and poet, lived there for a while. Somebody has copied a famous painting by our well-known Catalan “Modernista” painter Ramon Casas on a door, where he and Pere Romeu ride a bicycle. The latter was the owner of Els Quatre Gats, a beautiful café where artists of the time met for a coffee and a chat –from Santiago Russinyol, Joaquim Mir, Isidre Nonell and Casas himself to Picasso. The place is still open and is worth a visit. The third important element in this photograph is a person passing carrying a Catalan flag. Catalunya more than ever is asking for independence.