DAP AVENTURA 2018-2019

Aventura al fin del mundo 2018 - 2019
Photographic Profile
Luisa Villablanca:
SELF-EXILED IN MAGALLANES
I started in photography just after the 2010
earthquake (“27F”). I worked as a graphic
designer in Santiago, but my roots were in Bío
Bío, (region of the earthquake’s epicenter) and
due to the roadblocks and work obligations,
I didn’t get the chance to travel immediately
to see my family, who were directly affected
by the disaster. Then, I used photography
as a way to make catharsis in the middle
of such a complex situation. I toured the
affected areas of Santiago with my camera
and I portrayed part of the reality lived by
many families like mine.
Four years ago I arrived from Ñuble to
Magallanes, the distance between these
places in a straight line is more than 1,800
kilometers, and more than 2,600 kilometers
by road, why so far? It could be because of
its rich regional history, the Strait of Magellan,
its landscapes, the heritage of its original
people, the proximity to Antarctica, Torres del
Paine National Park, known as “The eighth
wonder of the world”,… there are many
reasons that make this place something
magical and personal; magnetic, perhaps.
I first came to Magallanes in 2014 when I was
doing a 365 photo project, which consisted
in taking a daily picture of a doll in a different
tourist place in Chile.
During these years in the “Independent
Republic of Magallanes” I worked as a
photojournalist in the newspaper El Pingüino
of Punta Arenas, and I currently do for the
digital news site Prensa Antártica. I have
done photography classes in a very enriching
project aimed at children with attention deficit
and I have participated as a photographer
in several projects, also, from time to time
I participate in photo competitions.
Living in Punta Arenas, I was able to clarify
some myths. Here the penguins do not walk
through the streets of the city, but there is
Magdalena Island, located 1 hour away by
ferry, which hosts more than 60,000 pairs
of penguins that can be visited between
November and the first fortnight of March of
each year; so, after approximately 3 hours in
total travel you might get to meet a penguin!
Many also believe that it rains a lot in Punta
Arenas, because in general in Chile, the
further south you travel, the more humid it
becomes, but in Magallanes everything, (even
this) works differently, in general, the wind
and the cold predominate more than the rain.
And the snow? Not as much as you’d expect:
if you want a lot of snow, you have to go to
Puerto Williams, the southernmost city in the
26 Adventure at the End of the World