Esto es España is a project by PhotoVogue artist Sergio Pontier, Dominican and Spanish-born, and Equatorial-Guinean stylist Juanjose Mouko Nsue, who reimagine Spanish culture and its visual representation. Esto es España centres Blackness as the focal point from which to view Spanishness, creating images where traditional cultural symbols such as flamenco and football are re-contextualised through the duo s gaze.
Deconstructing stereotypes and trivialisations, Pontier and Mouko Nsue portray friends and collaborators using elements of pop culture to underline the centrality of Black Spanish identity in the country’s narrative. Flamenco skirts, streetwear, and regional costumes are used to challenge the lack of Black representation within Spain’s visual culture.
Curated and introduced by Tosin Adeosun, Esto es España aims to be the starting point of a more ambitious mission: reshaping history for the generations to come, fostering education, and offering recognition. “I want to reach a point where we’re not labelled ‘Black artists’ or ‘Black stylists, we’re simply Spanish artists, full stop. That’s the real goal, to belong fully, without qualifiers’” says Mouko Nsue.
“I feel we’re living in a real moment of change, and the real legacy isn’t just the art, it’s the environment we create for the next generation to thrive,” says Pontier. On November 27th, at Photobook Café in London, there will be a book launch and exhibition—an opportunity to support the project and begin reshaping Spanish visual narrative for the next generation.
