I came across these images taken by Magnum photographer Bruno Barbey in Portugal, which seem to be part of a series – but were taken over various times as he visited the country (some in the 60s and some in the mid 90s). Most of the scenes are from the medieval village of Obidos and depict flower sellers in traditional garb. I can’t find more information than that, sadly (his website is scant and no amount of googling revealed the story behind these images). He once said, “Photography is the only language that can be understood anywhere in the world.”
Bruno Barbey was born in Morocco and raised in France. He studied photography and graphic arts in Switzerland. In the 60s he began his relationship with Magnum Photos, later serving as President of Magnum International. Over five decades Barbey photographed in all five continents and covered wars and conflicts in Nigeria, Vietnam, the Middle East, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Northern Ireland, Iraq and Kuwait. His work has appeared in the world’s major magazines and he has published over 30 books.
Barbey passed away in 2020 and his NYT obit can be read here. You can buy beautiful prints of his work at Magnum photos, including this poster from his Portugal series. But this photograph from Morocco is probably my favourite.
