The Cabildo of Lanzarote, together with the Government of the Canary Islands, will present the book 'Javier Reyes. The artisan look' next Wednesday, January 26, in the Assembly Hall of the Insular Library. The event will be the culmination of the exhibition on the photographic legacy of the Lanzarote native that has been on display since last September at La Casa Amarilla.
The book has been co-edited by the Cabildo of Lanzarote - through the Data Center and the Publications Service directed by Myriam Barros - and the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage of the Government of the Canary Islands. It includes a careful selection of images by Javier Reyes, accompanied by texts by Mario Ferrer, Carmelo Vega and Carlos Schwartz, experts in historical photography of the Canary Islands.
The President of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, María Dolores Corujo, the General Director of Cultural Heritage of the Government of the Canary Islands, Nona Perera, the Councilor responsible for the Data Center and Publications of the first island corporation, Myriam Barros, and the photographer and documentary filmmaker Javier Reyes Acuña are expected to attend the book presentation.
"With this publication we want to recognize the figure and work of Javier Reyes, for his great contribution to the visual culture of our island. We are aware that the best way to value and respect our past is through its dissemination," said the President of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, María Dolores Corujo.
For her part, the Councilor of the Data Center and Publications of the first island corporation, Myriam Barros, highlighted the "incalculable and exceptional value" of Javier Reyes' work. "His images allow us to know and get closer to our past and it is a pride for us to have this collection of images and be able to make them available to the public," she added.
"It often happens that only through photography do we notice what is evident in reality but we do not observe or notice. We do not know of its existence until we see the images of Javier Reyes. This copy is only a sample of Javier's work, because he will continue working, activating the memory of Lanzarote with the contagious enthusiasm that characterizes him," said the General Director of Cultural Heritage of the Government of the Canary Islands, Nona Perera.
Admission to the book presentation will be free until full capacity, which will be limited due to the current health situation. Under the same and in case of extending the health regulations established by the Government of the Canary Islands regarding the requirement of Covid certificate for the islands that are in level 3 and 4, it will be necessary to present it to access the event.
More than 16,000 negatives transferred by the author
The exhibition 'Javier Reyes. La mirada artesana' collects the work of this veteran photographer, who captured rural images of Lanzarote and La Graciosa between 1940 and 1970. A work that includes more than 16,000 negatives transferred by the author to Memoria de Lanzarote, which has digitized and analyzed his archive for the first time.
The exhibition can be visited until January 31 at La Casa Amarilla of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, located in Arrecife, from Monday to Friday from 10:00 to 18:00 and Saturdays from 10:00 to 14:30. In addition, you can also take a virtual tour of the exhibition, through the website of Memoria Digital de Lanzarote.
Later, the exhibition 'Javier Reyes. La mirada artesana' will tour the rest of the municipalities of Lanzarote before moving to other enclaves in the Canary Islands, with the aim of ensuring that his work transcends the limits of our island.