Tuesday 30 March 2010

TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS INSIDE THE RIVIERA BROTHEL



Mossos d’Esquadra’s Agents, the Catalan Autonomous Police, came in the early hours of this last Saturday in the two largest Catalonia’s prostitution centres, Riviera and Saratoga, and closed them, as a precautionary measure.
In 2000 I photographed inside the Riviera, using a hidden camera, for Public magazine in which I was the Head of Photography.


I don’t like doing this kind of photography, always related to investigation subjects. Early in my career, I did many of these photos for Interviú magazine. I think someone had to do it and I did. They were very valuable as a news but not as photographs. I entered inside the Riviera together with the publisher that had been previously. I used a F80 Nikon, with 28mm f: 2.8 wide-angle, loaded with colour negative film Fuji 800 ASA. The camera was hidden in a dark raincoat, rolled on my right arm, where the lens peeked by the sleeve. I shoot in an automatic program, without looking at waist high, with my left hand holding a beer, politely rejecting the proposals, more or less attractive, from the ladies approaching me.




When I run out of film, I went to the toilet and put another one. In the two rolls there were many shots that did not turn out well, but a few were suitable enough such as those shown here. Before publishing the story, I consulted Josep Cruanyes, the UPIFC lawyer, which certainly is the person in this country who knows more about image rights. Clients and prostitutes can’t be recognizable - said Cruanyes, what it was neither my intention nor that of the magazine,- because they could sue you. As for a possible demand from the Riviera -it was another possibility that I was concerned about - you must know that places hasn’t got image rights pointed the lawyer-. After that information, we published the story in the October 2000 issue and titled it Pimp connexion. Powerful organizations controlle the multimillionaire business of the big sex centres.

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