El Soler Blasco Museum Xàbia became a meeting point this Saturday for reflection on the present and future of the image, within the framework of the Ojos Rojos 2025 International Photography Festival. The day brought together a large audience around three proposals —two talks and a round table— that addressed, from different perspectives, the relationship between photography and technology.
The morning began at 10:00 a.m. with the conference 'The photobooks of my life'The workshop was led by Juan Pedro Font de Mora, founder of Railowsky, one of Spain's leading bookstores and galleries. Font de Mora offered an intimate and well-documented overview of the titles that have shaped the history of the photobook, championing this format as a space for creation and visual thought.
At 11:00 am, photographer Fernando Puche took over with his talk 'Things we no longer need (Photography and Artificial Intelligence)'In his presentation, Puche—a figure closely linked to the Xàbia photography community—analyzed the impact of artificial intelligence on creative processes and on how we perceive the contemporary visual landscape. He combined a critical perspective with a poetic reflection on the transformation photography is undergoing in the digital age.
The day concluded with the round table discussion. 'Photography and Artificial Intelligence', in which Fernando Puche, Julián Zuazo and Susanne Pfingsten (directors of the PFZ Art gallery in Xàbia), Nuria Carbó (specialist in digital transformation and communication) and Jo García-Garrido (photographer, editor and director of Fantú magazine) participated.
The debate, followed with great interest by the public, addressed essential questions: Can photography still be considered a reflection of reality? Or has it become a construct shaped by algorithms and digital tools? The speakers agreed that artificial intelligence poses unprecedented ethical and aesthetic challenges, but also opens new avenues for experimentation and redefines the relationship between author, image, and viewer.
The Ojos Rojos Festival continues to consolidate itself as a meeting place between art, technology and contemporary thought, reaffirming its role as one of the cultural benchmarks of the Marina Alta.
