Los Thyssen (1989)
The difficulty of editorial photography lies in getting the image to show part of the psychology of its subjects without words. In 1989, while working for El País, Chema Conesa and Alberto Anaut were commissioned to interview and photograph baron and baroness Thyssen at their residence Villa Favorita, in Lugano, Switzerland.
When they arrived at the residence, at about ten in the morning, the aristocrat received them in his bathrobe. Heinrich Thyssen announced that the Baroness was in London doing some shopping, but that she would meet with the journalists over the course of the morning. Meanwhile, he invited Conesa and Anaut to visit his house freely: A bedroom filled with works of art, a bathroom decorated with a Renoir…
Upon arrival of the Baroness, they set the scene for the press report: the outside of the Villa Favorita and the iconic painting of her collection Arlequin, by Picasso, add the final touches to the portrait.
Conesa, in addition to the portraits he took of many well-known personalities, has worked as a graphic editor and curator of many exhibitions dedicated to key figures of Spanish photography.
Chema Conesa
Murcia, 1952
He is known for his work as portrait photographer and, in recent years, as editor and curator of exhibitions. An admirer of Cartier-Bresson, he began his career as a sports journalist for El País, but soon began to develop his career as a portrait photographer. His camera has captured a snapshot of the main characters of the new Spanish democratic era, such as Alberti, Felipe Gonzalez and Almodovar, and has also immortalized international figures such as Annie Leibovitz, Mario Vargas Llosa and Jack Lemmon.