Presentation

Ecuador / 1893-1924
The forgotten photographer of the 1920s.

He is one of Ecuador’s greatest photographers. Yet until recently, there had been no attempt to resurrect his images, mainly because conservative society would have preferred his work to drop into oblivion. Emmanuel Honorato Vázquez came from a wealthy family but was a rebellious, anticlerical iconoclast, a bohemian and an epicurean. He was a resolutely modern writer and photographer who died too young, having unknowingly left his mark on the history of his country. Backed by the municipal council of Quito, archivist Patricio Tipan Lucero worked relentlessly to publish a book of his images in 2018. “The greatest quality of Honorato’s work is undoubtedly the depth of his portraits, his ability to envision the lives of his models,” writes Pablo Corral Vega, another Ecuadorian photographer on show at the La Gacilly Photo Festival. This will be the first opportunity in Europe to discover the creative force of this great artist, expressed at a time when Latin America was slowly awakening to the maelstrom of modernity. He shows us a stratified, complex and profoundly unequal society that is nonetheless rich in traditions, customs and ritual celebrations, some of which have not stood the test of time.
Emmanuel Honorato Vázquez_FestivalPhotoLaGacilly2020
Emmanuel Honorato Vázquez_FestivalPhotoLaGacilly2020

Exhibition

Emmanuel Honorato Vázquez_FestivalPhotoLaGacilly2020
Viva Latina !
The forgotten photographer of the 1920s.
Ecuador / 1893-1924

He is one of Ecuador’s greatest photographers. Yet until recently, there had been no attempt to resurrect his images, mainly because conservative society would have preferred his work to drop into oblivion. Emmanuel Honorato Vázquez came from a wealthy family but was a rebellious, anticlerical iconoclast, a bohemian and an epicurean. He was a resolutely modern writer and photographer who died too young, having unknowingly left his mark on the history of his country. Backed by the municipal council of Quito, archivist Patricio Tipan Lucero worked relentlessly to publish a book of his images in 2018. “The greatest quality of Honorato’s work is undoubtedly the depth of his portraits, his ability to envision the lives of his models,” writes Pablo Corral Vega, another Ecuadorian photographer on show at the La Gacilly Photo Festival. This will be the first opportunity in Europe to discover the creative force of this great artist, expressed at a time when Latin America was slowly awakening to the maelstrom of modernity. He shows us a stratified, complex and profoundly unequal society that is nonetheless rich in traditions, customs and ritual celebrations, some of which have not stood the test of time.