In 1966, at the age of 28 and shortly after leaving his job in an advertising agency to devote himself to photography, Joel Meyerowitz (New York, 1938) embarked on the road trip that would lead him across Europe for an entire year. He travelled more than 30,000 kilometres through ten countries and took around 25,000 photographs. During this period, he moved to Málaga for six months and befriended the Escalonas, one of the city’s traditional Flamenco families.

This unique experience, which resulted in an extraordinary photographic record of Spain in the midst of the Franco dictatorship, was hugely influential for Meyerowitz and had a lasting impact on his photographic style. Today, the US artist is recognised as one of the most prominent photographers of his generation who redefined the way to capture and communicate reality with a camera. After going back to New York, he held his first solo exhibition at the MoMA in 1968, which included forty photographs taken from his car window on his journey around Europe.

This exhibition brings together large period copies in both colour and black and white and offers a broad sample of Meyerowitz’s travels through England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany, Turkey, Greece and Italy, focusing on the importance of his extended stay in Spain. Following his artistic evolution during the time he spent in Europe, the exhibition shows portraits of local folk, unique moments captured in everyday street scenes and urban and natural landscapes. It also includes a selection of original prints from his first solo exhibition at MoMA.