The exhibition provides an account of the difficult situation experienced in the Arab countries of North Africa since 2010
In January 2011, spring arrived ahead of winter in the Arab world. Thousands of Tunisians flocked onto the streets to demand respect for their social rights and better working conditions, in a country living under the yoke of dictatorship. That first demonstration encouraged thousands more citizens to defend their basic rights. The events in Tunisia sparked unrest in neighbouring countries, from Egypt to Bahrain, where popular protests were repeated. The international press labelled this wave of protests “the Arab Spring”.
After the fall of the dictators, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen held their first democratic elections, bringing an end to decades of hereditary absolute rule. The changes, however, have not brought peace to the area, and conflicts remain ongoing. The exhibition focuses on these revolts and protests that spread through the Arab world between 2010 and 2013. A record of the harsh reality experienced in Egypt, Libya, Bahrain and Syria is provided by the following photographers: Ricardo García Vilanova (Barcelona, 1972), recently released after being kidnapped in Syria; Diego Ibarra (Zaragoza, 1982), a documentary photographer who has lived in Pakistan since 2009; Manu Brabo (Gijón, 1981), winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 2013; Alfonso del Moral (Valladolid, 1977), runner-up for the 2010 Carmignac Gestion Photojournalism Award and the Magnum Expression Award; Maysun (Zaragoza, 1980), a Spanish-Palestinian photographer whose work has been published in The New York Times, Der Spiegel and Stern and elsewhere; and Guillem Valle (Barcelona, 1983), winner of the World Press Photo and Best of Photojournalism awards.
