Beyond the Lake

Tony brought home nuts, claiming Rosemary gave them to him, though she existed only in his dreams. Adolf and Raúl’s house was burned down by neighbors over land disputes. María, an emigrant, left her son in Galicia. Years after her return, he succumbed to alcoholism, a reflection of the broader struggles faced in rural areas. Sabucedo’s wild horses struggle for space as rural abandonment reduces their lands. The droughts of 2022/23 left 14.6% of Spain in water emergency, exposing critically low reservoirs. The village of Aceredo, submerged by the Lindoso reservoir, has reemerged due to droughts, offering a haunting glimpse into the past. Eucalyptus replanting for industry, including Altri’s proposed textile fiber plant, risks biodiversity, soil health, and water sustainability. The factory’s daily water use of 46 million liters threatens the Ulla River, a lifeline for the region.

These stories stem from Galicia, where reality blends legend. Change driven by climate challenges, depopulation, land abandonment, emigration, and alcoholism threatens the fragile identity of Galicia’s communities. This project sheds light on their struggle to adapt and survive.

Carlos Folgoso Sueiro

Carlos Folgoso Sueiro is a photographer from Spain who has a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology. His photographic work engages closely with social, geopolitical, and environmental issues, particularly in Russia and his homeland, Galicia, Spain. His interests range from historical and philosophical topics to abstract ideas like the origin of time, gravity, the creation and destiny of the universe, and the deep feelings of human beings. In select works, Carlos investigates, from a metaphorical point of view, the atmosphere and problems of his land: nostalgia, abandonment, social rejection, exclusion, and dualisms such as oppression and domination. Other works stem from long-term documentary projects that explore isolated or self-excluded communities around remote areas of the Russian Far East. For Carlos, what once began as a story about the place itself and the people who lived there, has become a study of his evolution as a photographer. Beyond his documentary work, Carlos works as a photojournalist covering current events such as the Lampedusa Sea, the migrant crisis in the Mediterranean, the refugee exodus from the Middle East, and the Costa Concordia disaster. His work has been published in several publications, including National Geographic, and Vanity Fair. He has also worked closely with leading photographers and photo editors such as Jonas Bendisksen and Alex Webb and also participated in the Eddie Adams Workshop and the New York Times portfolio review.