ALFONSO. 50 YEARS OF SPANISH HISTORY
This unique exhibition reveals the social, political and cultural situation in Spain at the time. It includes everyday scenes of life in the street, such as the public washing places on the Manzanares River, the turkey vendor, the striking image of a zeppelin flying over the Gran Vía and the surprising scene of a bull stabbed in the middle of the street. Other truly extraordinary images include crucial political events such as the speech by Alfonso XIII (1916), Manuel Azaña’s participation in the constitution of Republican Action (Acción Republicana) in 1925, the jubilant proclamation of the Second Republic at Puerta del Sol (1931), the sad image of Julián Zugazagoitia and Largo Caballero behind bars in the La Modelo Prison (1934) and others never published such as the horrifying images of the court-martial and execution of General Fanjul (1936). Finally, the exhibition offers a gallery of skilfully captured portraits of major figures, including intellectuals such as Pérez Galdós, Pío Baroja, Federico García Lorca, Antonio Machado and Valle Inclán, the scientists Gregorio Marañón and Santiago Ramón y Cajal, and artists and bullfighters such as Juan Belmonte, Joselito, Chueca and Raquel Meller.

THE PHOTOGRAPHER
The signature ALFONSO first appeared in the press in 1904, when the well-known journalist Julio Burell called Alfonso Sánchez García (Ciudad Real, 1880-Madrid, 1953) to direct the photography section of the ‘El Gráfico’ daily newspaper. From that moment on, this young photographer’s fame continued to spread after his acclaimed reports on the Portuguese revolution (1909), the successive campaigns in Morocco (1909-1921), the General Strike (1917), the flight of the Plus Ultra (1926), the uprisings of Jaca and Cuatro Vientos (1930), and the jubilant proclamation of the Republic (1931).

In 1923, when General Primo de Rivera left the Constitution in suspension, all the country’s graphic publications sought his collaboration, despite his known links with La Libertad, El Sol, and other Republican and Democratic newspapers of the period. Nobody ever doubted his privileged position in the hierarchy of graphic journalism, due to his talent for reporting, his natural instinct and penetrating eye, his surprising ubiquity, and a dedication to his trade which set him apart from his colleagues. But his prestige as a reporter never overshadowed his wide popularity as a portrait photographer, making his studio in Calle Fuencarral the meeting point for journalists, writers, politicians, bullfighters and artists. 
 

From 16 January to 22  February
Casa de la Provincia (Plaza del Triunfo, 1. 41004. Seville)
Opneing Hours: Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 14:00 and 18:00 to 21:00.
Free entry
This exhibition has been organised in collaboration with the Seville Provincial Council, the Lunwerg Publishing House and the Social Activities Fund of the Caja Madrid Savings Bank.