Lanzarote mourns the passing of veteran photographer Javier Reyes Azuña. The President of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, Oswaldo Betancort, wanted to publicly convey, on behalf of the entire Corporation and himself, his condolences for the passing of the photographer. "I would like to express our deepest condolences to all the family, friends, and relatives of Reyes for this painful loss. My deepest condolences on behalf of the entire Cabildo," Betancort stated.
The President of the first Island Corporation added that "without a doubt, this is a very sensitive loss because Lanzarote and its audiovisual history lose one of its most prominent figures. A man who knew how to portray, with special talent and naturalness, the daily life of the island's inhabitants, especially his hometown of Haría, the villages of northern Lanzarote, and La Graciosa. But, above all, this loss is especially painful due to the human quality of Javier Reyes. We are talking about an excellent person, a good and generous man. A Lanzarote native who wanted to share with all his fellow citizens a legacy that has allowed, and will allow future generations, to know and investigate the recent history of the island," concluded Oswaldo Betancort.
Javier Reyes Acuña (Haría, 1926-2024) alternated various jobs with the professional practice of photography for almost 30 years. Between 1943 and 1972, Reyes kept a photographic studio active in his house, in the square of his hometown, where he dedicated himself to portraying the inhabitants of the towns of the north of the island of Lanzarote and the islets of the Chinijo Archipelago. In addition to studio portraits, he went out into the street, capturing daily life, showing an unusual skill in reflecting, with truthfulness, humanity, and closeness, the customs, traditions, and experiences of his neighbors.
The result is a photographic collection composed of more than 16,000 negatives, which forms one of the most important legacies of the visual, cultural, artistic, historical, and anthropological heritage of Lanzarote and La Graciosa.
From 2007, after more than 30 years of storage, and thanks to the generosity of Javier Reyes and his family, the Cabildo of Lanzarote began the work of digitizing and disseminating his entire archive through the Digital Memory of Lanzarote. His complete collection can be consulted in the link of the Digital Memory of Lanzarote.
In September 2021, the Cabildo of Lanzarote organized an exhibition dedicated to Reyes at La Casa Amarilla, under the title 'Javier Reyes: The Artisan Look'. In turn, a catalog book was published with the same title, which includes a selection of his best images.
Finally, on December 9, 2023, the documentary 'Javier Reyes: The Artisan Look' premiered at the La Tegala Sociocultural Center in Haría, a production commissioned by the Data Center - Digital Memory of Lanzarote of the Cabildo and made by Veintinueve Trece, which will be screened again on March 6 and 7 at the Cine Buñuel of the CIC El Almacén.
In addition to all this, his work has aroused the interest of historians and researchers from all over the world and his work has been exhibited on his native island on repeated occasions, as well as on other Canary Islands, such as Tenerife, Gran Canaria and La Palma, and outside the archipelago, in places such as Azores (São Miguel), Cape Verde (Santiago) and Madeira (Ponta do Sol).
