Back to search

Children at bonfires of Sant Joan, in Barcelona

Date
1955 - 1965
Archive
National Archive of Catalonia
Document type
Imatge fixa
Reference code
ANC1-1236-N-6148
Link to the online document
Description

The photograph “Children at the bonfires of Sant Joan, in Barcelona”, taken by Pere Català i Roca between 1955 and 1965, is a visual testimony to the persistence of popular Catalan traditions in a context of cultural repression. The Sant Joan festival, with fire as a symbol of purification and renewal, celebrates the summer solstice and reinforces collective identity. This image, of great plastic strength, reflects the vitality of Catalan society despite the limitations of the Franco regime. The photographic document, from a private collection of one of the most outstanding photographers of the 20th century, exemplifies the typological and thematic diversity of Catalan documentary heritage. In addition, it shows how popular culture has been a vehicle for resistance and social cohesion, contributing to the construction of a European identity based on diversity and shared memory.