barcelonaen2020

BARCELONA, I LOVE YOU

NOVEMBER 2020

Images and Reflections

Series of photographs by Jordi Rodríguez-Amat

The painter is a visual artist who, with tool in hand, in this case the camera, allows him to express himself through perceived images.

I spent the month of november 2020 in Barcelona and, touring the city, I took advantage of the wonderful autumn light (a photograph is an image obtained by light.) to capture with my camera the images that impressed my retina. I must confess that every time I pressed the camera shutter, it came to mind: Barcelona, I love you.

It should not be forgotten that photography is art and, as an artist, I enjoyed the possibility of expressing myself through composition, the balance of shapes and volumes, "chiaroscuro" and perspective, among the many other values of the images.

I know Barcelona very well, the city where I have lived for many years of my life. At no time did I want to do a photographic or tourist report on Barcelona. Simply, throughout my walks around the city, I captured, through my camera, those images that I considered to have artistic interest.

To take a photo you don't have to go very far, you have to analyze the values that make it up; the composition of shapes, directional lines (perspective), volumes, lights and shadows, among many other plastic values. It must be said, however, that the same point of view can vary completely depending on the time of day and the lighting. With patience you have to know how to wait, obviously, for the best moment.

Photography is a tool for artistic creation and it must be used with knowledge. It is the artist's perception that determines the photograph. The camera is only the means of reproducing the perception of the creator. It is clear that you have to understand the tool with all its characteristics to use it correctly.

There are two kinds of photography: analog photography and digital photography. Analog photography consists of recording images on sensitive film and later enlarging them on paper through a chemical process. In digital photography, images are captured by an electronic sensor which converts the digitized light that is stored in the memory.

I took this series of photographs with a Nikon Coolpix 5400 digital camera and, at the same time, I worked them with an image editor program.

LA RAMBLA (CANALETES)

	The Rambla de Barcelona, also called the Ramblas because it has several sections with different names, Rambla de Canaletes, Rambla de les Flors, Rambla dels Caputxins and Rambla de Santa Mònica, is an emblematic promenade of Barcelona that runs between Catalonia square, the neuralgic center of the city, and the Old Port where the monument to Columbus rises. Originally, it was a stream, that is, a river where only water passes according to the rainfall regime..
		La Rambla (Canaletes) In order to avoid symmetry with a vertical axis and, at the same time, give more value to the forms (trees and buildings) on the right, I placed myself on the left. Try not to limit your perception of this photo to the simple fact that it could represent the anecdote of La Rambla de Canaletes and try to perceive the plastic values of the image; perspective, contrasts, chromatism, among others. Appreciate the intimate sense I wanted to give to this photograph.

The Rambla de Barcelona, also called the Ramblas because it has several sections with different names, Rambla de Canaletes, Rambla de les Flors, Rambla dels Caputxins and Rambla de Santa Mònica, is an emblematic promenade of Barcelona that runs between Catalonia square, the neuralgic center of the city, and the Old Port where the monument to Columbus rises. Originally, it was a stream, that is, a river where only water passes according to the rainfall regime..

La Rambla (Canaletes)

In order to avoid symmetry with a vertical axis and, at the same time, give more value to the forms (trees and buildings) on the right, I placed myself on the left.

Try not to limit your perception of this photo to the simple fact that it could represent the anecdote of La Rambla de Canaletes and try to perceive the plastic values of the image; perspective, contrasts, chromatism, among others.

Appreciate the intimate sense I wanted to give to this photograph.

REIAL SQUARE

Reial square

The absence of vehicles, the quadrangular structure and, among other things, the verticality of the palm trees give this photograph its charm.

One of the values that interested me was the contrast determined by the arches and the windows, by the palms and the shadows cast on the ground.

The so-called Reial Square is one of the most distinguished squares in Barcelona. It is down the Rambla dels Caputxins on the left next to Ferran street. It is one of the few squares with porches in the city, which gives it character and makes it exceptional. With a rectangular floor plan, built between 1848 and 1860, it is in neoclassical style with all the characteristics of the so-called main squares.

LAKE OF THE CITADEL PARK

	The Citadel Park is located in the Ribera district in the triangle between the station of France, the Arc of Triumph and the Olympic Village. It was laid out on the old grounds of the fortress of the Citadel from which it takes its name. It is the largest urban park in Barcelona after Montjuïc. It was built in 1872, with a similar design to the Garden of Luxembourg in Paris. In addition to the lake, this park has, among others, the Parliament of Catalonia, the Zoo and several museums. In 1951 the park was declared a historical-artistic monument and is included in the register of Cultural Assets of National Interest of Catalan heritage.
		Lake of the Citadel Park The luminosity of the ground at the bottom right and that of the trees in the background allow us to capture the blue and green of the water. The reddish tree reinforces the blue-green color of the water. In color theory, orange and blue are complementary colors. Complementary colors are pairs of colors that give white in the optical mix.

The Citadel Park is located in the Ribera district in the triangle between the station of France, the Arc of Triumph and the Olympic Village. It was laid out on the old grounds of the fortress of the Citadel from which it takes its name. It is the largest urban park in Barcelona after Montjuïc. It was built in 1872, with a similar design to the Garden of Luxembourg in Paris.

In addition to the lake, this park has, among others, the Parliament of Catalonia, the Zoo and several museums. In 1951 the park was declared a historical-artistic monument and is included in the register of Cultural Assets of National Interest of Catalan heritage.

Lake of the Citadel Park

The luminosity of the ground at the bottom right and that of the trees in the background allow us to capture the blue and green of the water.

The reddish tree reinforces the blue-green color of the water. In color theory, orange and blue are complementary colors.

Complementary colors are pairs of colors that give white in the optical mix.

BORN ARCHEOLOGICAL SITE

Born archeological site

The archeological site of the Born allows you to see the remains of the city from the early 18th century.

The Born as a market served as the central market for wholesale fruit and vegetables and was in operation until 1971, when Mercabarna opened.

Despite the bright light of the stained-glass windows, the part of the site is clear in the photograph, thanks to the upper skylight.

Notice the difference between the structural order of the metal building with perfect geometry and the distribution of the remains of the buildings in the site.

To take the picture I positioned myself to the right in order to give much more intensity and richness to the perspective, while still being a frontal conical perspective. Mentally draw the lines of the metal structure to see that they all follow the same direction.

CAPUTXES STREET BORN DISTRICT

	Behind the Gothic fountain of Santa Maria del Mar you can access the unusual Caputxes street. The name comes from the hood making workshops in the Middle Ages. The Born district is one of the oldest areas in Barcelona and one of the four districts that make up the Old City district. Between the 13th and 15th centuries, the Born district was the economic epicenter of Barcelona.
	Caputxes Street Born district This photograph is dear to me. In this neighborhood and specifically on this street, the students of Fine Arts came at seven in the morning, just when the day got up, to make perspective drawings. This happened in 1961. At nine o'clock we were at the School of Fine Arts on Avinyó street to start painting classes. I have a drawing made from the same point where I took this photograph. Analyzing the perspective of this photograph we see that it is a frontal conical perspective. Drawing all the lines of the street, the balconies and the windows we see that they all coincide at the point called the main point which would be at the midpoint of an imaginary line called the horizon. This point coincides with the very center of the arc at the bottom. The teacher of the perspective classes was Josep Mestres Cabanes, set designer of the Liceu.

Behind the Gothic fountain of Santa Maria del Mar you can access the unusual Caputxes street. The name comes from the hood making workshops in the Middle Ages.

The Born district is one of the oldest areas in Barcelona and one of the four districts that make up the Old City district. Between the 13th and 15th centuries, the Born district was the economic epicenter of Barcelona.

Caputxes Street Born district

This photograph is dear to me. In this neighborhood and specifically on this street, the students of Fine Arts came at seven in the morning, just when the day got up, to make perspective drawings.

This happened in 1961.

At nine o'clock we were at the School of Fine Arts on Avinyó street to start painting classes.

I have a drawing made from the same point where I took this photograph.

Analyzing the perspective of this photograph we see that it is a frontal conical perspective. Drawing all the lines of the street, the balconies and the windows we see that they all coincide at the point called the main point which would be at the midpoint of an imaginary line called the horizon. This point coincides with the very center of the arc at the bottom.

The teacher of the perspective classes was Josep Mestres Cabanes, set designer of the Liceu.

BOATS IN THE PORT

Boats in the port

I leave you the analysis of this photograph. Think about the forms, not as objects but as compositional and chromatic values, etc.

THE WALK OF THE WOODEN DOCK

The walk of the wooden dock

This space was the first port in the city many centuries ago, when Barcelona was Roman. Later, as its popular name suggests, the Wooden Dock had wooden storage and stowage functions. I still remember how much wood there was. Today, and after being remodeled in the context of the 1992 Olympics Games, it is a pleasant walk by the sea perfectly integrated into the city.

La The richness of Barcelona's palm trees is evident in this photograph of the wooden pier.

Analyze the leaking perspective of the ground by contrasting with the strong vertically of the palm trees. Mentally trace the lines of the steps and those at the top of the palm trees and you will find the vanishing point.

The sky is presented with two types of blues: a cobalt blue at the top and a sky blue at the bottom.

Regardless of the camera, the photograph has been worked on with the computer, giving it brightness through contrast.

THE SAME WALK OF THE WOODEN PIER

The same walk from the wooden pier, from another point of view.

The brightness of the sky and the part of the earth, despite the shadows, allows the strong contrast of the trees.

Barcelona, I love you.

SET OF CHAIRS IN CANALETES

Set of chairs in Canaletes

The intimacy of the empty chairs placed at random, especially with the light and shadow, is the theme of this photograph.

The disorder is transformed into order and the simplicity of the images allows for all kinds of free interpretations on the part of the viewer.

CATALONIA SQUARE WITH THE SCULPTURES

OF JOSEP DUNYACH AND JOSEP CLARÁ

Catalonia Square with the sculptures of Josep Dunyach and Josep Clarà

This is one of the photographs that personally satisfies me.

It is a photograph without stridency and very sensitive.

The imaginary line determined by the heads of the statues and the iron railings maintain a direction of flight that is counteracted by the building in the background to the left.

The luminosity of the foreground on the left is reinforced by the softness of the blues and grays in the other parts of the photograph.

Barcelona I love you.

GÜELL PARK

	Originally, Güell Park was to be a residential area with plots to build houses. Eusebi Güell had bought some land and commissioned Gaudí to design the entire development. The situation was privileged with great views, but the fact of being away from the Barcelona of that time was not successful and finally became the current public park. In 1984, Parc Güell was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. These photographs are not intended to be a photographic report of the park. The whole series about Barcelona, October 2020, was conceived and created from an artistic perspective.
	Guell park Barcelona is a city of parks and Güell Park is one that fills my spirit. It is always said that nature is not part of the city. This park is a clear example that contradicts this manifestation. Here we also find a backlight. The vegetal elements are opposed to the light from the front.

Originally, Güell Park was to be a residential area with plots to build houses. Eusebi Güell had bought some land and commissioned Gaudí to design the entire development. The situation was privileged with great views, but the fact of being away from the Barcelona of that time was not successful and finally became the current public park.

In 1984, Parc Güell was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. These photographs are not intended to be a photographic report of the park. The whole series about Barcelona, October 2020, was conceived and created from an artistic perspective.

Guell park

Barcelona is a city of parks and Güell Park is one that fills my spirit.

It is always said that nature is not part of the city. This park is a clear example that contradicts this manifestation.

Here we also find a backlight. The vegetal elements are opposed to the light from the front.

GÜELL PARK

Güell Park

Hypostyle Room Columns of the Hypostyle Hall framing nature.

I leave to you the analysis of this photograph.

GÜELL PARK

GÜELL PARK

Güell Park

Güell Park Stone and nature make up this photograph of Park Güell.

Again I must state that without light there is no photography. In this park the architecture combines fully with nature.

Regardless of the Hypostyle Hall and the buildings at the entrance, the architecture seems to have grown as nature itself does.

The blue of the sky allows to emphasize the green of the trees and this one with the whiteness of the stone.

To take a picture you have to wait for the right moment when the lights allow you to see the images perfectly. Without light there are no images.

AGAVE IN GÜELL PARK

Agave is the protagonist of this photograph.

The background of the city allows you to see the contrast between nature and the city.

	I am thinking, if there is no force majeure that prevents it, to go between November 2024 and February 2025, to spend a month in Barcelona. To be determined which month. If there is someone who wants to accompany me, contact me. I speak english. It must be someone interested in art (museums), literature (theatres), culture in general.

The photographs of the Barcelona october 2020 series can be enlarged on paper 30 cm high x 40 cm wide.

Interested: (0034) 697 76 18 74 e-mail: casa-taller@rodriguez-amat.cat

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