PHOTOGRAPHER RAFAEL TRAPIELLO
A visual artist who focuses on social and territorial issues as well as subjects related to time and memory. His photography is close to poetry in the sense that he moves away from the visual cliches of the documentary style.
I was born in 1980 in Madrid, Spain. Although I finished my Civil Engineering studies and worked as an engineer, I became a professional photographer in 2006. I’ve published several books (Todos los Tiempos, the most recent one), and have also exhibited in Spain and abroad (Spanish Pavilion of the XV Venice Architecture Biennale, Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia (2015 and 2019), Lianzhou Foto 2017 (China)). I am represented by Arniches 26 Gallery.
Tell us about your greatest inspirations or influences
I have always found inspiration on artists from all fields, not just photographers. Painters, sculptors, writers and poets- but in order not to extend myself with an endless list, I will be listing just a few photographers who have been essential to me in recent years.
Juan Manuel Castro Prieto (@castro_prieto), my mentor since I began photography.
Garciela Iturbide (@gracielaiturbide) who’s work explores death, Sally Mann (@sallymannofficial) and Bryan Schutmaat (@bryanschutmaat) exploring the relationship between land and the people.
Japanese photographers very close to Zen, Rinko Kawauchi (@rinkokawauchi) and Masao Yamamoto (@yamamotomasao3009).
How does technology affect your creativity Rafael?
To me there is a very clear consequence that comes from how we consume images today. Vertical formats have gained specific weight compared to horizontal ones due to the fact that the screens of our mobile devices are vertical. Hence why I am taking many more vertical photographs than ever. I think more vertically than horizontally in terms of image. I don’t however, see it as something negative but as a natural evolution of photography. To me the natural framing of photography does not have to necessarily mean it should be horizontal, even if your are shooting a landscape. If we think about this for a moment, we can see that the traditional representation of landscapes in western culture is essentially horizontal. in the end I think social media is transforming the way we think about images and as a result photography is more inclusive for all cultures.
We’d love to hear more about your creative process.
My creative process changes a lot depending on the project I'm working on. In my documentary projects, firstly I choose the subject. Then I spend some time researching and reading. As this kind of my projects are closely related to land, I also work a lot with virtual terrain reconnaissance tools, such as Google Earth or Google Street View. This allows me to find and locate easier some places that I'm interested in, saving a lot of time.
when I work on projects that are closer to my personal diary and poetry, the process is different. Initially there is a period of more intuitive photography, more visceral. Then there is another period of reflection afterward, in which the recurring themes I've been working on are revealed. And finally, a period in which I work more consciously on the issues that have emerged during the period of reflection. A good example of this is my last book "Todos los tiempos". In 2016, when my daughter was born, I started doing some kind of photo diary. At first I thought that it was going to be just a work about fatherhood, but finally it is not only about that, since after years of working I realized when reviewing the work that other transcendental themes appeared recurrently: life, death, love, beauty and time. Once I was aware of this, I started working more specifically on these issues to finish completing the work.
How did the pandemic affect your creativity or work?
The pandemic really allowed me to put aside my documentary projects for a while so that i could focus on my project about fatherhood. During lockdown we were very lucky, because we managed to spend all that time in a family country house where we could go for a walk every day. I was connected more intensely than ever with nature and I think that has notably influenced my most recent photography.
What does wellbeing mean to you?
For me, wellbeing is closely related to silence, something that is increasingly scarce nowadays. Perhaps it is for this reason that I became a photographer, since it is a discipline that requires a lot of solitude and silence. my need to return to nature in recent times also has to do with the need of getting away from the noise of contemporary life and finding peace.