“The journalistic exercise makes us more sensitive with realities”: photographer Federico Ríos

Federico Ríos passed through the microphones of Women, A renowned documentary photographer whose work has focused on portraying with sensitivity and depth the social and human conflicts of Latin America. With more than ten years of experience, Ríos has established himself as one of the most powerful visual voices of Latin American photojournalism.

Initially he talked about his participation in the Book Fair with his photolibro Darién, through which it seeks to show migration conflicts and their lack of support networks.

“We will be at the Book Fair, in the Pavilion of Independents, at Stand 147, with the Raya Editorial,” He said, commenting on some works of colleagues who will be in his same pavilion.

How long did you take the preparation for your report in the Darién?

“We have been working on the immigration issue for many years. I started doing the book ‘Darién’ in 2013, in a very particular way, I didn’t know it was going to be a book. I documented in Caracas the death of Hugo Chávez, the elections of Nicolás Maduro and finally how Venezuela was entering an economic and social collapse, I began to photograph migrants, and without knowing it, Looking back I said -there is, here is a complete book -“”he said, highlighting that many of his photographs were published in New York Times.

He also mentioned that in his work It is based on the generation of trust and understanding of realities.

“The base is to generate trust, people are not surprised that they are photographing them. Portation to migrants, it is they who ask me who I am and what I do there. In that story also what I see is that people have more willingness to be photographed and tell their story and those who do not. It is also about opening the people who are there. They are not objects or a product, I am interested in their situation and where their lives go ”he commented.

Finally, he highlighted the journalistic exercise, as something that has helped him understand other realities.

“The journalistic exercise does not make us harder, but more sensitive to realities, Because we understand them and we can know what the lives of those people can end (…) I see many solidarity people, that returns to me faith in humanity, ”he added.

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