Join Alejandro Cartagena for a look at his creative process to mark the opening of his SFMOMA exhibition, Alejandro Cartagena: Ground Rules. He will explore how his work is shaped by a deep investigation into the complex relationships between the natural environment, urban development, and civic life. Known for his research-driven approach, Cartagena begins each project by setting specific creative constraints that guide the development of his photographic series. In this talk, he’ll share how these decisions take shape — and how they ultimately lead to projects that reflect both the hyperlocal and the far-reaching impacts of urbanization on both climate and people. Through his images and archival research, Cartagena traces the lasting effects of development on communities and landscapes, revealing patterns and systems often hidden from view that offer a framework for understanding how we got here.
The talk will be followed by a book signing.
About the Artist
Over the last two decades, Alejandro Cartagena’s projects have employed landscape photography and portraiture to examine social, urban, and environmental issues. His work has been exhibited at more than fifty group and solo exhibitions, including the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB) in Barcelona and the Fondation Cartier pour l’Art Contemporain in Paris. His work is held in the permanent collections of the George Eastman House, The J. Paul Getty Museum, The Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago, The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, the Portland Museum of Art, SFMOMA, and others. Cartagena has received several awards including the international Photolucida Critical Mass Book Award, the Street Photography Award from the London Photo Festival, the Lente Latino Award in Chile, the Premio IILA-FotoGrafia Award in Rome and the Salon de la Fotografia of Fototeca de Nuevo León in Mexico. He was shortlisted for the Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize in 2021. Cartagena lives and works in Monterrey, Mexico.
Accessibility Information
Accessible seating is available at this event. Accessibility accommodations such as American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation are available upon request 10 business days in advance.
Please email publicengagement@sfmoma.org, and we will do our best to fulfill your request.