El Catalejo

Collaborative art and community projects

El Catalejo develops community projects through collaborative artistic practice, with a focus on sociocultural context, images, and visual language. It is coordinated by Vanessa Roca and Alberto Martín.

Approach and methods

Its approach is based on co-creation and active participation, with the team acting as a bridge among the people and organizations involved. Photography is combined with other practices, including image theater, Theatre of the Oppressed, video, and collage.

Selected projects

• Nosaltres no tenim por, nosaltres som (“We Are Not Afraid; We Are”) (2023–ongoing): a project revisiting LGBTQ+ memory during the Franco dictatorship and Spain's democratic transition in Catalonia. It includes a traveling exhibition in Barcelona, Tarragona, Lleida, and Girona, along with dialogue, co-creation, and outreach sessions.
• El barri és dels infants (“The Neighborhood Belongs to Children”) (2023)
• Com a casa (“Like Home”) (2022)
• Fii La Nek (2022)
• EL COS DE LA CASA (“THE BODY OF THE HOUSE”) (2021–22)
• MICOS (2020–21)
• Gent de barri (“Neighborhood People”) (2020)

Collaborators

El Catalejo has worked with organizations in all four Catalan provinces. Partners have included Pla de Barris, Barcelona City Council, Espai Fotogràfic Can Basté, Utopia Barcelona, Institut Escola La Mina, Associació Lemur, Associació Trama, Sant Pere Pescador City Council, and Forès City Council.

Contact

Email: info@elcatalejo.org. Phones: 639 32 78 58 (Vanessa) and 699 49 56 94 (Alberto). Instagram: @el.catalejo.