Madrid: 150 years of history in analog photography

The photography of the city of Madrid is a living testament to its social, cultural, and urban evolution. Over more than a century, images captured by professional and amateur photographers have documented the transformation of its streets, monuments, and inhabitants, recording both its lights and shadows. In this extensive journey—from the arrival of photography in Spain in the 1840s up to 1990—we will explore how Madrid has been portrayed in each era, how photographic styles have evolved, and what these images reveal about the history of Spanish photography.

Origins of photography in Madrid (1840–1860)

The beginnings of photography: Daguerreotypes and calotypes

• Arrival of the technique: In 1839, Louis Daguerre announced his process in Paris, and shortly after, the first news reached Madrid. By the mid-1840s, intellectual salons and drawing academies began hosting the first technical explanations.

• First photographic studios: The French portraitist Claude Félix Abel Niépce de Saint-Victor (great-nephew of Nicéphore Niépce) set up a small workshop on Calle de la Montera, near Puerta del Sol. His highly detailed daguerreotypes focused on portraits of Madrid’s elite.

  

  Portrait of a Man Dressed in the Majo Style (Madrid, 1843)

• City portrait: Although cameras were primarily used in studios, views of landmarks such as Plaza Mayor and Almudena Cathedral began to emerge, captured from open windows facing the outside.

  

  First Daguerreotype of Views of Madrid (1840–50)

Social impact

• Accessibility: The high cost of daguerreotypes limited photography to the upper classes, but their popularity encouraged the establishment of studios on central streets such as Preciados, Arenal, and Vallehermoso.

• Pioneering women in Madrid: Adelaida Foix stood out as one of the first female portraitists, working in a small family business on Calle Ancha de San Bernardo, specializing in albums of relatives and friends.

The Establishment of the profession (1860–1890)

Transition to wet collodion

• Faster technique: Wet collodion, introduced in Spain in the late 1850s, allowed for shorter exposures and larger plates. This enabled detailed views of Madrid’s architecture, including the Teatro Real, Puerta de Alcalá, and the Casa de Correos at Puerta del Sol.

  

  Puerta del Sol (Madrid, 1857). Charles Clifford

• View albums: Studios like José Martínez Sánchez’s published albums titled “Views of Madrid,” compiling photomechanical prints made from wet collodion negatives. These albums were distributed in bookstores along Carrera de San Jerónimo and Calle Alcalá.

  

  Calle Alcalá (Madrid, 1860–86). Viewbook by Jean Laurent

Social portraiture

• “Society Photography”: During the Restoration, there was a growing taste for depicting Madrid’s bourgeoisie. Wealthy families commissioned group portraits in their homes in neighborhoods like Salamanca and Chamberí, blending traditional attire with modern furnishings.

  

  Costume Ball at the Palace of the Dukes of Fernán Núñez (Madrid, 1862). Ángel Alonso Martínez

• Notable photographers:

  • Antonio García Paredes: His studio on Calle Hortaleza specialized in family and pet portraits.

  • Manuel Rodríguez: An innovator of the “carte de visite,” small-format portraits used for social exchange.

    
    

Madrid at the turn of the century (1890–1910)

Photography as an urban document

• Urban modernization: With the opening of Gran Vía (begun in 1904), photographic reports emerged documenting the demolition of old houses, the installation of electric streetlights, and the construction of new buildings in eclectic and modernist styles.

  

  Start of Gran Vía Construction Works (Madrid, 1910)

• Street images: Photographers like Félix Robledo roamed Puerta del Sol and Plaza de Oriente with box cameras, capturing everyday life: street vendors, pedestrians with umbrellas, horse-drawn carriages, and the first automobiles.

  

  Tram: View of Calle Alcalá (Madrid, 1900)

Photojournalism

• Illustrated press: Weeklies such as Blanco y Negro and La Esfera published photomechanical prints and featured collaborations with photojournalists who sent plates from official events, military ceremonies, and bullfights at Las Ventas.

  
  

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  Blanco y Negro magazine

  
  

• Social documentation: At the same time, poverty in the outskirts of Prosperidad and Carabanchel was documented, showing shanties and poor people gathering firewood.

• A book that compiles images reflecting Madrid’s urban transformation over a century and a half.

  
  
  
  

Avant-Garde and pictorialism (1910–1936)

European influences

• Pictorialism: Madrid embraced the pictorialist movement, which prioritized artistic beauty over mere replication of reality. Edges were softened, and light and grain were creatively manipulated.

• Cultural organizations: The Association of Painters and Sculptors included photographic sections in their exhibitions, while the magazine Arte y Letras promoted aesthetic theories.

  
  

Key photographers

• José Ortiz Echagüe: Renowned for his portraits of traditional Spain, he traveled beyond Madrid but maintained a studio on Calle Clavel. His portraits of flamenco dancers and landscapes from La Mancha earned international awards.

  

  Lagarteranas (1925) by Ortiz Echagüe. Collection of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid

• Concha Méndez: Poet and amateur photographer who documented the bohemian life at the Residencia de Estudiantes, capturing portraits of Lorca, Buñuel, and Dalí in their everyday surroundings.

Civil war and postwar Period (1936–1950)

Photojournalism in conflict

• Reporters on the front line: Diego Ramos and Agustín Centelles cover the defense of Madrid during the Republican siege. Their images depict trenches, refugees in the subway, and bombings over the Casa de Campo.

  

  Toledo Street during the Spanish Civil War (Madrid, 1936)

• War press: The Republican side publishes Mañana with snapshots from the rear guard; the Nationalist side hires photographers to spread heroic images of Francoist troops.

  
  

Portrait of the destroyed city

• Documenting the ruins: Villagers and residents of Lavapiés pose beside destroyed facades, also common in neighborhoods like Argüelles and Universidad.

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  Destruction on Preciados Street during the Spanish Civil War (Madrid, 1937)

• Partial reconstruction: In the late 1940s, Francoist officials launched photographic campaigns to showcase “recovery”: images of construction work on Gran Vía and the Las Ventas bullring amid the ruins left by the bombings.

  
  

The resurgence of artistic photography (1950–1970)

New generations

• Mariano Navarro: With his 35mm camera, he documents urban life: San Miguel and Maravillas markets, trams, cafés on Calle del Pez, and taverns in La Latina.

• Photography groups: The Madrid Photographic Club, founded in 1952, organizes contests, discussions, and exhibitions at the Casa de las Flores. Developing techniques are shared, and experimentation with filters and intense contrasts takes place.

  
  

Social and street photography

• Portrait of Marginality: An interest arises in peripheral neighborhoods such as Ciudad Lineal, Orcasitas, and San Blas. Photographers like Carlos Pérez capture young people playing football in vacant lots, washerwomen by the Manzanares River, and beggars at Atocha station.

  
  

  

  Washerwomen on the Manzanares River (Madrid)

• Monuments with a critical eye: In the 1960s, some photographers, such as Elena Parra, capture the deterioration of heritage sites: the poor condition of the façade of San Jerónimo el Real church and the cracks in the Royal Palace.

  
  

Transition and modernity (1970–1990)

Democracy and cultural openness

• La Movida Madrileña: Until the early 1980s, a cultural explosion bursts forth in Malasaña and Chueca. Young photographers — Manuel Outumuro, Alberto García-Alix — document musicians, artists, and night owls. The Leica camera and high grain define an intimate and raw style.

• Madrid during La Movida: Nighttime walks along Calle Fuencarral, portraits in clubs like Rock-Ola, early graffiti and graffiti artists. These images appear in alternative magazines such as La Luna de Madrid.

  
  

  

  Portrait at the Rock-Ola Club in the Prosperidad neighborhood (Madrid, 1981). Miguel Trillo

New institutions

• Museum of Contemporary Art: Opened in 1975, it begins to include contemporary photography exhibitions in its programming, internationalizing the perspective on Madrid.

• Community of Madrid: With decentralization, the new administration promotes the creation of the Regional Image Archive, gathering negatives, slides, and historic prints from studios and independent photographers.

  
  

Fidelity to black and white

• Enduring style: Despite the arrival of color photography, many artists continue to use black and white as their medium of expression. The rich grays in Matías Costa’s urban chronicles and the backlighting of cafés at dusk by José Manuel Navia still convey a city in transition.

• Reports on urban evolution: Photographic chronicles documenting the transformation of old communal courtyards into modern apartment blocks, reflecting the early gentrification of neighborhoods like Lavapiés.

  

  The Corrala. Lavapiés Neighborhood (Madrid, 1975)

Monuments and iconic spaces

Puerta del Sol y Plaza Mayor

• Symbols of Power: From early picturesque photographs to New Year’s Eve snapshots, Puerta del Sol and Plaza Mayor have been constant backdrops. Portraits of tourists on the corners, political demonstrations, carnival dances, and the Bear and the Strawberry Tree fountain.

  
  

Gran Vía y Cinema District

• “Madrid’s Broadway”: Gran Vía appears in early 20th-century images with wooden trams; in the 1930s, with neon marquees in the Cinema District; in the 1950s, with cinemas screening westerns; and in the 1980s, crowds buying records and visiting fashion stores.

  
  

  

  Gran Vía (Madrid, 1950). Black and white photograph later colorized

  
  

El Retiro y el Paseo del Prado

• Green Lung: Photographed from boats on the Estanque Grande, images of strollers date back to the 1880s. In the 20th century, literary gatherings, temporary exhibitions at the Palacio de Velázquez, and the damaged grass after major popular events like the Book Fair are documented.

Retiro Pond (Madrid, 1950)

The people of Madrid: Portraits and customs

Anonymous portraits

• Everyday life: The markets — Antón Martín, Maravillas — appear filled with customers wearing capelos; children play ball in the alleys of Lavapiés; elders chat on benches in Retiro Park. These scenes, captured by both amateur and professional photographers, portray gestures and faces that define Madrid’s unique character.

  
  

Festivals and traditions

• San Isidro: Since the early 20th century, images of chulapas and chulapos on the meadows of the Manzanares River have formed a distinct photographic genre. Family albums display polka-dot dresses, lanterns, and fairground crosses.

  
  

  

  San Isidro Meadow (Madrid, May 15, 1905)

  
  

• Carnival and Christmas Eve: Photographs of processions with masquerade groups along Calle Mayor, living nativity scenes, and families gathered around the table. Postcards featuring 19th-century images of these celebrations circulated in mailboxes well into the 1950s.

  
  

Techniques and equipment: The evolution of the craft

Cameras and formats

• From plate to roll: From glass plates to collodion and daguerreotypes, through cellulose nitrate rolls (Kodak Brownie) in the 1920s, to 35mm film with Leica and Nikon in the 1960s. Each technical advancement opened new possibilities for mobility and discretion.

• Printing and developing: Studios like Foto Estampa (founded in 1923) combined laboratory and studio work, printing silver prints that were then distributed to photographers and clients.

  
  

Styles and genres

• Formal portrait vs. Street photography: The 19th century favored austerity and props; the 20th century, especially after the war, sought spontaneity and the vibrancy of the street.

• Color and experimentalism: Although black and white dominated until the 1970s, in the 1980s some artists explored color through slides and C-41 processes, incorporating filters and post-production in the lab.

  
  

Legacy and collections up to 1990

Archives and museums

• Regional archive of the Community of Madrid: Houses thousands of historical negatives, street studios, and family albums donated by collectors.

• Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía: Since the late 1980s, dedicates spaces to contemporary photography, organizing retrospectives on La Movida and the documentation of the Spanish Civil War.

  
  

Publications and studies

• Monographs: Madrid en la mirada (1985) compiles crucial reports of the capital from its beginnings to the Transition.

• Academic research: Doctoral theses at the Complutense University explore urban iconography, the standardization of views, and the collective memory conveyed by photographs.

You can continue exploring more vintage photographs of Madrid on this blog

Photography of the city of Madrid, from the early nineteenth-century daguerreotypes to the color photojournalism of the late 1980s, is far more than a mere visual reflection: it bears witness to political, social, and cultural changes. Through the lenses of official portrait photographers, photojournalists, and amateurs, we come to know not only its monuments and streets but also the lives of its people, their customs, and the city’s evolution as a modern metropolis. Each image preserves a fragment of history that, treasured in archives and collections, continues to inspire new generations of photographers and Madrid enthusiasts to understand the past and envision the city’s future.