Photojournalism nominee

"Being victim of forced displacement is most than just losing a piece of land, it is much more, than losing property, it is such a profound tragedy, that gets inside the human soul and affected forever"
In 2000, the illegal armed group forcibly displaced 1500 families from their village. A decade later, several people return to their homes to portray and pay homage to the land that, no matter how much time passes, will always be their home. Located in northern Colombia, Mampujan is today an uninhabited village wrapped in vegetation. The inhabitants of this community, plagued by paramilitary violence, had lost their homes but, according to them, a miracle of God prevented them from being killed. After a deep immersion in the collective and individual memory of the inhabitants, we found raw testimonies where life overcame tragedy. A strange case in the common denominator of Colombian paramilitary violence. The house is the place where longings are sown, lives are watered and memories are harvested. When a house is left, part of the individual's history is abandoned. If the farewell to the home is a consequence of the war, desolation appropriates every corner, wall and tile.

Documentary photographer. He has been working for more than two decades on issues such as armed conflict, indigenous cultures and historical memory. Jose Luis Identifies himself as one of the photographers who prefer natural light and silenced realities. Passionate about documentary exploration he defends participatory research as a work methodology. With one hand he holds his camera and with the other hugs his characters. That is the secret that allows him to capture moments of particular intimacy. In 2010 he was awarded the "National Colombian-Swiss Photography Award" for his project "La Casa Tomada", which was carried out with victims of forced displacement in Colombia. In 2019, he was named winner of the "Memory and Tolerance" contest organized by the Colombian and Mexican consulate in the city of Boston. In the year 2018 the Government of the United States grants him "The Permanent Residence for Extraordinary Ability". In 2017 he was nominated by the International Color Awards. In 2016 he was selected to be part of the book "Basta Ya" published by the National Center of Historical Memory. He continues to work as a researcher, making visible what the mass media prefer to ignore.