Among / Alone reflects on the relationships between the individual and the collective, on how identities are shaped through others, and on ways in which belonging has historically been represented through images. From labor associations and uniformed bodies to communities in transit, friendships, couples traveling together and anonymous gatherings, the group has long been one of the essential structures through which social life is organized—a framework through which individuals inhabit and recognize the world around them.
Every collective image contains a dual reading: that of the group as a visible structure of order and belonging, and the individuals who compose it, each carrying subtle gestures, singularities, and micro-narratives that emerge from within repetition and resemblance. In every gathering coexist both harmony and tension, unity and multiplicity. The group thus appears as an ambiguous structure, suspended between cohesion and dissolution, belonging and the loss of individuality.
The historical photographs presented in this exhibition evoke a time in which belonging to a group was understood as a natural extension of everyday life. The collective image functioned as a public affirmation of identity and testimony of one’s place within a community, profession, family, or social class. In contrast, contemporary perspectives approach the collective from a more uncertain and fragmented position.
In a society that has elevated individuality to the center of lived experience, contemporary forms of gathering reveal one of the defining paradoxes of our time: we have never been more connected, and yet the experience of solitude has never felt more present. The group ceases to be merely a space of belonging and becomes instead a site of tension—a place in which one may recognize oneself, dissolve, seek protection, or disappear.
Bringing together historical and contemporary perspectives, the works presented here invite viewers to consider how representations of the collective transform over time, and how every group photograph ultimately contains two simultaneous narratives: that of the collective as a social force, and that of the individuals who, within it, resist, assert, or fade from view.
Developed in collaboration between Leica Gallery Madrid and the Alcobendas Photography Collection, the project creates a dialogue between the collection’s historical holdings and contemporary perspectives. Through this encounter, it proposes an intergenerational reflection on the ways community, identity, and the experience of belonging— or remaining alone within the group — have been represented through photography.
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Alex Webb
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Valentín Goppel
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Santi Palacios
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kKiana Hayeri
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Jose Manuel Navia
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Ana María Arévalo Gosen
