Appointed by Carlos Monsiváis as “the Photographer of the city”, Héctor García would celebrate his hundred years of life in 2023.
With more than a million and a half negatives in his archive, his lens witnessed the daily life of the second half of the 20th century in the capital, thus leaving a rich photographic and documentary legacy, which includes portraits of characters such as David Alfaro Siqueiros , José Clemente Orozco, Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera.
To commemorate its centenary, nine exhibitions will open between August and September, in various parts of the city, beginning on August 19, with the opening of the exhibition ¿Qué me ves? Héctor García with a lens view, in the Museo del Estanquillo, in the historic center of CDMX.
With a collection of more than 50 years old, Héctor García Jr. acknowledged that the million and a half negatives from his father’s archive have been kept “in a very basic condition to maintain them”, since specific actions are needed for their care, such as control of temperature and humidity.
Although the photojournalist is grateful that with these exhibitions it will be possible to digitize the archive, in collaboration with the Institute of Aesthetic Research of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, he also admits that only less than 10 percent of the total archive would be digitized.