Abandoned Forests - 2019 - 2020

Abandoned Forests is a continuation of the cork harvester project. Aproximatley 50% of the cork forests in Catalonia are abandoned or not sustainably managed. It is better if these forests are sustainably managed because they help to deter climate change, maintain biodiversity, avoid forest fires and desertification as well as generating work and economic possibilities for local communities. Prior to the 1960’s these forests were taken care of due to a thriving cork industry as well as other needs for forest products which are no longer in use today.

This project is a branch out from the project on the cork harvesters and has concentrated on the long line of men and women who work with this renewable raw material during the fall and winter months in and around the Gavarres forest mass which is eminently a cork forest, from forest technicians and forest workers to scientists, cork stopper manufacturers, cork forest owners… This project was produced during the 2019-2020 VII Masterclass in Barcelona and exhibited at FUGA Centro de Fotografia.

Precisely concentrating on the people who do work with cork and manage forests I wish to draw attention to the fact that protecting, preserving and developing these forests is in our own interest, especially in these times in which climate change and volatile economies are a major concern.