PhotoEspaña turns a forgotten Madrid location into a jungle of art.

The neighborhood residents have forgotten what used to be there. "It used to be a psychology center," says a woman from the neighborhood association, but another woman next to her shakes her head: "There used to be a dry cleaner's nearby," although that wasn't it either. It seems as if, after a deep sleep, everyone has lost their memories. There's only one clue: the establishment, abandoned for years, had a green sign that read Club Natura , located at Eugenio Salazar 25. Was it a wellness center or a yoga center, perhaps? A herbalist? Pío Cabanillas doesn't know either, despite asking the neighbors many times, but he liked the abandoned atmosphere of the place because it contrasted with his own work and that of Sandra Zobel. Now, the abandoned space is the Imara Estudio gallery and will host the Revenge photography exhibition until July 17 , as part of the PhotoEspaña off-air festival.

Located in the heart of Madrid's Prosperidad neighborhood , Imara Estudio is still settling in. Little by little. Neighbors poke their heads in, curious, and some dare to enter. "Hello, is this a carpentry shop ? No? So, where is it?" asks a woman, a little lost. "We already have the anecdote of the day," jokes Pío Cabanillas, as he patiently explains the exhibition to everyone who enters. "I hope to see you; we'll be giving out wine at the opening on Thursday."

The neighborhood isn't accustomed to this type of space (a mix of New Age -style Reiki centers and CrossFit gyms with traditional businesses. There's even a shop that sells eggs just one day a week, showcasing the different faces of gentrification ), but the photographer notes that the proposal has been very popular, even though PhotoEspaña exhibitions are usually held in more central areas of the capital. "The neighborhood is responding incredibly," says Pío. "We're telling them to use PhotoEspaña's hashtags , and that's how we're building Prospe's great cultural project . It's a charming neighborhood, like a small town."

Pío Cabanillas traveled to the ends of the earth, literally, to take the photographs now on display at PhotoEspaña. In the remote South Shetland Islands, on the evocatively named Deception Island , there was an abandoned whaling station, and that's where his work began. "In the Antarctic enclave were the vestiges of one of the most devastating industries of the 20th century; they remained there as ruins," he notes. With his camera, he didn't intend to document a specific physical location (although that's also true), but rather the memory of the violence inflicted by humans on nature. "The Antarctic landscape not only appears as a backdrop, but as an active force that responds to and rewrites the territory under a new temporal logic: that of natural resilience ."

They traveled to remote Deception Island in the Arctic, Micronesia, and the Philippines to photograph abandoned places where nature flourishes.

When he returned to Spain and met Sandra Zobel, they were both struck by the similarity in their works. Zobel had traveled to the other side of the Earth, specifically to the islands of Yap and Coron, in Micronesia and the Philippines respectively, but their themes were very similar. Or perhaps it's that nature responds the same way everywhere. With his photographs, Zobel also sought to highlight how the humidity in those jungle locations has rapidly decomposed any human traces, turning structures created long ago into sculptures destined to disappear completely and be forgotten. "Nature reclaiming what is its own," says Pío, somewhat recalling that phrase that began to be heard in the early days of the pandemic , when everything seemed abandoned and lonely.

For this very reason, Imara Studio is the perfect place for its purpose, since, abandoned for a long time, it seems ready to be reborn again and given a second chance. Zobel and Cabanillas' photographs function as an installation, since entering Imara Studio is like entering a jungle : weeds and branches hang everywhere, and there's even an abandoned sofa in the center of the room, which seems about to disappear into the undergrowth .

"The concept is relatively simple: humans enter nature and completely distort or destroy it, and then leave behind the remains and debris, which is also destructive," the photographer notes. "Then nature reclaims its place . That's why we decided that, alongside the photographs, we would create an installation along the same lines: everything you see are pieces that were in this very space and that fulfilled what we talked about: everything was abandoned, discarded, unrecycled... With that, we decorated the gallery."

There are thirteen photographs in total: seven by Cabanillas and six by Zobel. According to its artists, Revenge is not a neutral photographic series because it does not seek to beautify the ruin, but rather documents the material consequences of an ethic that prioritizes exploitation and profit over life.

"This is a testament to how humans have attempted to dominate entire ecosystems without taking responsibility for their actions."

"The whaling station and the islands of Micronesia and the Philippines are here both metaphor and evidence: a testament to how humans have attempted to dominate entire ecosystems without assuming the consequences of their actions," he explains. "But it's also a symbol of the persistence of life beyond disaster. The images remind us that every human footprint is transitory and that nature always finds a way to reclaim what belongs to it . Nature's revenge is not hatred, it is balance. What was taken will be returned, what was destroyed will be replaced, what was imposed will be erased."

When the exhibition ends in two months, the center will become an exhibition and events hall: "For anyone who wants to present a book, a L'Oréal perfume , whatever. Downstairs there will be a photography and film studio, there will also be space for storage because this is very large. There will be a coworking area, a photography lab... it's a multi-service idea , a workshop, and also courses and classes . And although it's very audiovisual, it will be very adaptable. Photography, art, and sculpture will take priority," the photographer points out. But, until then, Revenge will continue as a reminder of our vulnerability to the regeneration of nature, for the curious or even for those who stumble upon it while looking for a carpentry shop.