When I started as a photographer, I was interested in mundane subjects, in particular the things everyone knew but no one paid attention to. Looking back on those modest documentary images of rural areas, I am moved by the memory of the long journeys I went on with companion photographers who shared this passion and are no longer with us today. Together, we discovered the beauty and humility of black and white photography. (A great author once said that color photography can only describe a person’s dress while black and white photography exposes their soul.) We inundated Europe, and a good part of the rest of the world, with images of this sensitive take on the popular religious pilgrimages that once wound through groves of olive trees. Now that I am in my eighties and have fought in too many trenches, and covered a wide range of artistic subjects, both in terms of my role as an educator and in terms of technical experimentation—visual art and beauty—I long to return to the memory of this documentary work …

Josep Maria Ribas i Prous

I have captured countless images on the paths I have taken … Always close to home, to my people, and my friends. My inspiration lies at the point where folklore meets personal experience, nature meets architecture, humanity meets mysticism. The careful, steady artisanship of analog photography—at once inspired and quiet, matured in the dark room—is integral to my work. I have completed the journey from the aesthetic encounter to the halide of the photographic paper numerous times, and though on occasion I have felt worn thin, I have never felt worn-out. About my work throughout the years, I will say that it was passionate and life-giving, which is plenty. And about these images I will say: either I found them in the enthusiasm of the search, or they found me in the calm of the voyage.

Llorenç Herrera Altés