’d been studying architectural design in Chile and thought I would do the same when I got to the US. But at university there, photography was one of my subjects – and the minute I put that first sheet of paper in the developer, it was magic to me. There is so much you can say in just one frame. I found it thrilling and overwhelming.
I’ve been living in the US for more than 50 years now and a lot of the pictures from my new book, Moral Minority, were made in the 1980s, when my notion of being a photographer was just beginning to form. The country was new to me and I wanted to figure out how to fit into it and how things worked.: that is to say, an immigrant to this country seeking to understand it through making pictures.
Countless events take place across this country each year: parades, agricultural fairs, sports events, flower and reptile shows. I’ve always been interested in these small events where people gather to perform or compete in some way. I’m curious about human behaviour, how people relate to each other in common spaces. To me, streets and public spaces are like theatre, but the lack of any rehearsal and the element of surprise elevates and transcends our expectations.
The competitor was having a break. Maybe he knew the girls already. He was chatting with them – the conversation obviously having to do with the quality of his physique because of the way he’s pinching his thigh muscle and the level of perfection in it. That’s what the whole event is about: who can create the “perfect body” by working hard and maybe becoming the nextAesthetically, why are photographs of muscular physiques so eye-catching? People flock to see Michelangelo’s David.
This shot represented a transition period for the man and for the girls: that moment when young people are particularly concerned with their bodies and how they present to others; when there is a lot of showing off and fascination; when everyone is looking for perfection in themselves and others. When I look at this photo now, it makes me feel that life goes on, but many things have not changed.