Lake Verea: Modern Barragan

A diaristic archive of pilgrimages to Luis Barragán's modernist abode.

In this intimate archive, the contemporary Mexican photographer duo Lake Verea record their pilgrimages, made over the course of nearly two decades, to the house of Mexican architect Luis Barragán (1902–88). As devotees of the architect, the duo began photographing the modernist mecca in 2006, endeavoring to approach as closely as possible to Barragán's spirit. The artists sat in his chairs, opened his closets, listened in silence and kissed in the house's enchanted garden. Modern Barragán compiles the fruits of their reverent labor. The photographs capture the house across a myriad of atmospheric conditions—in daylight, under the light of the full moon, by streetlight and against stormy skies. Flash photography lends the house a spectral quality; rubbed with aluminum sheets, the walls reveal their hidden textures, evoking the hidden memories contained within the home. As a spiritual sequel to the couple's photobook on Anni and Josef Albers, also published by Hatje Cantz, Modern Barragán is a one-of-a-kind yet double-sided look into the hidden facets behind the legendary name.

Based in Mexico City, Lake Verea comprises Francisca Rivero-Lake Cortina (born 1973) and Carla Verea Hernández (born 1978). Their "expanded photography" practice incorporates both analog and digital formats as well as mediums including textiles and performance.