Blow-up

In the late 1960s, a photographer roams the streets of the London in his Rolls Royce, stopping here and there to take pictures. Then goes to his studio, where models await him, then is off again. On the way he Read more

Mistrust

He had said that so many times. I´m sorry. From now on it will be different… She was split in two halves, one in the land of hopes, the other rooted in the grim reality of a frozen world in which nothing ever changes. She always tried to reach the bottom of his eyes. Talk to me, talk to me, please… This is not you, isn´t it? Who are you? Then, the recurrent chest pain, the nausea, that pale smoke around him… the conviction he was not there, nor even his shadow…

What am I going to do now? What am I going to do?

Photo: Image from the series ‘Nan and Brian in bed, NYC’, 1983 © Nan Goldin

Désir

Parfois les rêves se realisent. Alors, faites attention à vos désirs cachées…

“Le rêve de Meaume est celui-ci: Il est à dormir dans sa mansarde de Bruges (dans le logement que Jean Heemkers lui a accordé au-dessus de son appartement, au troisième étage de la maison sur le canal). Son sexe se dresse brusquement au-dessus de son ventre. La lumière blanche, épaisse, torride du soleil ruiselle autour du buste nu d´une jeune femme blonde au long cou. La lumière déborde tous les contours de son corps, rongeant les silhouettes de ses joues et de ses seins. C´est Nanni Veet Jakobsz. Elle penche la tête. Elle s´assied sur lui. Elle le plonge en elle d´un coup. Il jouit.”

Pascal Quignard, Terrasse à Rome, Paris, Éditions Gallimard, 2000.

Photo: Valerie and Gotscho Embracing, Paris, 1999 © Nan Goldin

Against land mines, against government falseness

Ten years ago, representatives of 122 countries gathered in Ottawa, Canada, to sign the treaty banning the use, production, trade and stockpiling of antipersonnel mines. Though the treaty was hailed as a milestone in the fight towards the indiscriminate use of weapons in wars, still much has to be done to acomplish the goals set by the delegates in Ottawa. To begin with, the number of signatories has risen to 156, but key actors remain outside the treaty, such as -oh, surprise!- China, India, Pakistan, Russia and the United States. Also, though in the current year only Burma and Russia have used this kind of mines, trade is almost non-existent, and the number of producing countries has dropped dramatically, signatory countries have only devoted one tenth of the money they commited to start removing mines from the ground and supporting survivors. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) network is doing an invaluable job to achieve a worldwide ban on antipersonnel mines, campaigning for the universal membership of the 1997 treaty, and helping the survivors. On the other hand, the Spanish government behaviour offers a perfect example of this bittersweet moment in the fight against land mines. Whereas the current socialdemocrat government -claiming to embody a progressive spirit in international aid policy- has tenfolded its contribution towards the goals set in the Ottawa treaty -as compared to the insignificant amount of money the previous conservative government devoted to the cause-, it has also multiplied by two the volume of Spanish arm exports.

Moreover, if we want the protection of civilians in armed conflicts to stop being a fallacy, the 1997 treaty has to be completed with another universal ban on cluster bombs. Currently, international summits and conferences are taking place -the last one just ended in Vienna- to draft a treaty which should be signed in 2008, but all this is occurring amidst the weakening manoeuvres of the same countries -sadly, some of them democratic and some others purporting to be- that have opposed the antipersonnel mines ban throughout this period.

These days, “Vidas minadas” (”Mined lives“), an exceptional exhibition on land mines and the experiences of the survivors by the much-awarded war photographer Gervasio Sánchez, is traveling to several Spanish cities. If you happen to be in one of them, do not miss it. Seriously.

Read more:

International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL)

Vidas minadas, by Gervasio Sánchez

Photo: Sofia Elface Fumo (1997), ‘Vidas Minadas’ series, by Gervasio Sánchez © Fundación Chandra