Ben Roberts

In 2007, 104 years after it first welcomed revellers from across Barcelona, the La Paloma dance hall shut its doors for what many thought was the last time. Forced to close down by the local government after years of noise complaints, the iconic venue (formerly home to a bronze foundry) was revered by its regulars and they mourned its loss. 

Owner Mercé March never gave up the fight to reopen the beloved nightspot, and in 2023, La Paloma was ready to welcome partygoers again. I was fortunate enough to visit over the weekend of ‘Carnaval‘, the raucous fiestas that are celebrated across Spain to mark the beginning of Lent. Banned during Franco’s time, the tradition of wild Carnaval parties was revived with a vengeance after his death in 1975. Seen from La Paloma’s balconies, the crowd forms one jubilant mass that bounces to disco beats.
 
This photograph is printed on Canson Baryta Gloss paper. Comprised of an acid-free alpha-cellulose and cotton white paper base with a true barium sulphate coating, Canson Baryta Gloss is a smooth paper which evokes the look and aesthetic feel of traditional darkroom papers. 

The paper characteristics are truly unique: providing excellent durability, outstanding black optical density (D-max), and superb image sharpness. The paper offers a good level of flatness, excellent surface homogeneity, very good cuttability, and its printed and non-printed surfaces differ only very slightly in glossiness. It offers an extraordinary wide gamut which improves colour reproduction and increases visual impact.

Prints are produced at The Printspace in London, and are accompanied by a signed certificate of authenticity. Please allow 8-10 days for production and delivery.

Edition of 5, 100cm x 75cm.