We created PhotoVogue Festival Echoes to allow those who participated in the event to contribute their voices to the Festival s narrative. During those days in Milan, we recognised our community s desire to come together and draw inspiration from each other s works. We highly value the sharing of experiences and practices, firmly believing that providing dedicated space to each artist can appropriately acknowledge the outstanding projects exhibited in November at the PhotoVogue Festival.
This 12th episode of PhotoVogue Festival Echoes is dedicated to Mauricio Alberto Holc who presented his project ‘Ser libre’ at the PhotoVogue Festival in Milan, as part of the exhibition ‘What is Beauty?’. Holc s work focuses on the stories of his friends and acquaintances, people who do not conform to societal expectations for their physical appearances and identities. Freedom is the only condition in which diversity can be nourished, and people can show an image of themselves that truly correspond to their intimate self. In these portraits, bodies narrate intricate stories which, in their individuality, maintain always a strong bond with the political and social surrounding. ‘Ser Libre’ is an hymn to recognition, acceptance and pride.
1. What is your favorite memory of the PhotoVogue Festival 2023?
When I think about the Festival, only beautiful memories come to mind letting the nostalgia and melancholy invade me. My favorite memories and what I want to highlight about the festival are the sense of community, family, friendship, and being in a safe place, where we can be who we really are and choose to be. It is difficult nowadays to really BE ourselves without conditions, and I feel that at the festival I was able to be myself at all times and connect in a way that sometimes is difficult for me in other environments. That s why what I like the most about PhotoVogue and I want to highlight is the multiplicity of voices it has, the sense of finding each other and sharing, being part of something collective that inspires other people and us artists.
Through the festival, I was able to meet and connect with all the people I admire and I never met in person before: for me that was incredible. I remember the day we all took photos together and wow! That was so magical, it was a day of pure happiness, and those moments of true happiness and joy are the ones that nourish our inner-self. And I think that it always happens within a community.
I also remember the first day of the exhibition, when I saw the exhibition materialised for the first time and I found myself there, in my work, my photos… That moment was unique and emotional for me: I was very excited and proud of myself, because most of my life I have lived it in shame and in anonymity. The power that art has is incredible and I believe it can truly change people s lives. It definitely changed and saved mine.
2. I remember that during the days of the Festival, Argentina was undergoing an election, and you were talking about that. Your photography is deeply rooted in politics, and in particular, in the political significance of non-conforming identities. Could you tell us more about this?
Argentina has been a global exemplar for its progressive equal rights policies in recent decades. Achievements such as the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2010, comprehensive sexual education with a gender perspective, the gender identity law, the legalization of abortion, the trans labor quota law, the introduction of non-binary IDs, among others, have marked significant strides towards historical reparation for women and the LGBTQ+ community. These laws have paved the way for a more inclusive Argentina, ensuring equal rights and opportunities for all. Yet, many of these landmark achievements now face potential jeopardy.
A week ago, the closure of the INADI (National Institute against Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Racism) was announced. Established by law in 1995, INADI s mandate was to devise and recommend national policies and specific actions to eradicate discrimination in all its manifestations. Furthermore, TELAM, the Argentine news agency founded on April 14, 1945, and a state-owned Public Limited Company, has ceased to exist. It was the largest news agency in Latin America and the second most significant in the Spanish-speaking world, offering content in Portuguese and English as well. Laws concerning abortion and trans labor quotas are under threat of cancellation, with over 600 articles proposed for repeal across various Argentine laws. The proposed changes include the privatization of state enterprises, the unrestricted sale of land, and the unbridled exploitation of natural resources, raising significant concerns.
Moreover, the use of inclusive language and the gender perspective has been banned throughout the public administration, with accompanying sanctions and penalties. This move prompts me to question the state of freedom when a language that enables individuals to be recognised and feel represented is prohibited. Language is a living, evolving entity that constructs and transforms realities, fosters relationships, and allows for self-expression and existence. Our existence, our battles, activism, and achievements are deeply entwined with politics. Today, the progress we ve made over many years is once again under threat.
3. Your project is called ‘Ser Libre’. What does freedom mean to you?
Freedom means for me to be able to be who I want and feel I am at this moment without conditions or impositions with the same rights as all people. Our identity is like water, it is in constant movement and change as long as it flows and does not remain still. Freedom is what allows me to continue being - without freedom we do not exist.
I often remember my childhood, adolescence and part of my adult life, which were taken from me in so many forms. I had happy moments and they were not exactly difficult times, but that was because I had to camouflage myself for years as someone I was not, adopting an identity that was not mine. It is so difficult to feel out of this world, to feel different and excluded, to not find representation anywhere, to blame ourselves and torment ourselves for our way of feeling or being. As human beings, we instinctively seek social connection, the desire to fit in, and be part of a community. In the absence of such connection, we often adapt or camouflage ourselves into something we don t resonate with, just to “be part of this world.”
My freedom began by leaving heterosexuality as a system: not only the sexual orientation, but also the complex system that dictates our lives and ways of relating and feeling. I see my project Ser libre as a channel through which I could integrate experiences from my entire life. It allowed me to heal the wounds of my past and to finally be the person I want to be. It also made me aware that my identity process is evolutionary and non-binary.
In the stories and experiences of my friends and acquaintances is where I found myself, and finally feel my freedom.
4. Is there an upcoming project you are working on?
I am currently refocusing my project “being free”, since, like our identities and ways of being, it is evolving. This project opened the doors to something that was deep inside me waiting to be free again: the love for handcrafts, for the artisanal, experimentation in art, like going back to the basics. That s why two years ago I started making images on film only, getting involved in the entire process, from taking the photos, developing them, scanning them and making black and white and color copies in my darkroom. I realised that the artisanal process is something that I love and I had lost it in adolescence entering the digital age, it was also one of the ways I had to express my feelings and reflect my true being. For me the materialisation of my photos, the tangible, is essential in this stage of my life in which I m re-discovering myself. This is why I also began to experiment with my archive of negatives through various manual techniques, incorporating them into my creative process and creating new dimensions for my project.
I am also working on other projects related to the indigenous communities of my region and their relationship with inhabiting the land, shared spaces, and nature. This also led me to collaborate with families and people from my area who have chosen to live outside the city in a more conscious and sustainable way, with a more sensory and deep connection with our roots, nature and its habitat.
