Madrid, a day in 1955: even though Spain was going through difficult times, the city kept on its bustling and hectic activity. Today, we can revive what a day in Madrid was like thanks to Cas Oorthuys a Dutch photographer who came to Madrid in the middle of the 50´s. Oorthuys wanted to make a photograpic coverage of the real core and essence of Madrid, without taking into account the political context. Thus, he was very interested in newspaper and postcard sellers in Puerta del Sol as well as in the cafés of the city, the busy Gran Vía Street, the family gatherings in El Rastro and also in Madrileños enjoying themselves in the mythical Pasapoga night club.

The Dutch photographer, walked round some areas of the city and took pictures of Madrileños´s daily pleasant moments in spite of the fact that Spain lived under a dictatorship but this did not prevent them from enjoying themselves. Oorthuys pictures of everyday life are, at present, of great interest because they allow us to sense what life in Madrid was like in the 50´s. This will be our journey into the past: we will take a walk around Madrid in the 50´s. We have already visited Calle Mayor.

1955: A DUTCH PHOTOGRAPHER AND A POET COME TO VISIT MADRID

It was May 1955 when the photographer Cas Oorthuys and the poet Bert Schierbeek came to Madrid from Holland in order to try to convey what life in our city was like.

They were both acutely aware of the difficult political times that Spain was going through. Nevertheless, they wanted to focus on Spanish culture and way of life which, for them, was an unkown world. They had both come to Madrid to write a travel book  (El Corazón de España) and Madrid had the leading role.

They were both amazed by, what for them, was an unknown culture and way of life. Oorthuys took wonderful pictures of everything that attracted his attention and that captivated him. On the other hand, the poet Bert Schierbeek illustrated the texts of Oorthuys´s pictures.

Now it turns out that those images enable us to see what Madrid was like at that time. These two artists managed to turn away from political issues and show the human and optimistic side of the people of Madrid.

AN ENTIRE DAY IN MADRID IN THE 50´S

In 2005, the Carlos de Amberes Foundation hosted a very interesting exhibition called Madrid, May 1955 which displayed 77 photographs taken by Cas Oorthuys.

All of these photographs were taken the same day in Madrid, from sunrise till sunset and until the small hours in Pasapoga night club. Oorthuys wanted to grasp what a whole day was like in Madrid in 1955.

Hence, the reason why nowadays, these images have great documentary value. What can we see in Plaza Mayor any day in 1955? What was a day like in El Rastro? What was the atmosphere like in Madrid at night on a feast day? In these photographs, we have the answer to all these questions. Above all, they brought the people of Madrid closer to Europe that was ignorant of what real life in Madrid was like.

Pictures: Cas Oorthuys, Museo de la Fotografía de los Países Bajos.