When re-encountering this beautiful series of photographic works by Florian Braakman, I felt quite nostalgic. It brought me back to a recent moment on a bar's terrace in an unknown village in South-Eastern Spain. While I was looking at the local youngsters gathering on the street underneath, just like when scrolling through the carefully organised photographs, a bittersweet sensation overcame me. Observing the teenagers I was trying to capture a piece of the youthful thrill of being so freely present, of experiencing the here and now with incredible intensity.
Seeing the work also reminded me of my first spring in Spain and the beautiful temporary artist community I met in that period, a few months after I began working with the team of AADK Spain's Artist Residency Program. Florian developed this project as a resident artist at the platform, and I was fortunate enough to write about it. The photographs, together with my original text, can now be seen on his website.