Sebastião Salgado (Brazil, 1944 – France, 2025), a master of universal photography, dedicated his life not only to observing and documenting nature, but also to contemplating it. La Fábrica, in collaboration with the Canal Foundation, presents “Aqua Mater” in Madrid, the first major exhibition of the Brazilian photographer’s work since his passing. The exhibition marks the 175th anniversary of Canal de Isabel II and the 25th anniversary of the Foundation.
Through nearly a hundred large-format black-and-white photographs, the exhibition is designed to invite viewers into a reflective contemplation and clearly demonstrates the power and immensity of water. “Aqua Mater” explores the unique sensibility with which Salgado (winner of the Prince of Asturias Award for the Arts) portrayed nature, and specifically water as a source of life in its various states: solid, liquid, and gaseous.
More than 25 years of travel
The exhibition is the result of more than 25 years of travel that the photographer undertook beginning in the mid-1990s to some of the most remote and spectacular places on the planet, such as Antarctica, Canada, Patagonia, the Amazon, Iceland, the Himalayas, Russia, and South Georgia.
Curated by Lélia Wanick Salgado (Brazil, 1947), an author, film producer, and environmentalist, this is the first time “Aqua Mater” has been exhibited on its current scale. Lélia heads the news agency Amazonas Images, which she founded with her husband in 2004.
The exhibition, which has already been on view in France and Italy, features for the first time a selection of images from the *Glaciers* series and arrives in Madrid in a presentation designed specifically for Sala Castellana 214, a former storage facility of the Canal de Isabel II.
A Celebration of Water
More than just a photography exhibition, this show takes viewers on a journey through some of the most breathtaking landscapes on the planet and invites them to reflect on the relationship between human beings and the most valuable resource for life. Aqua Mater also serves as a celebration of water as a common element linking nature, culture, knowledge, and sustainability.
Practical Information
When: October 28 through January 31, 2027
Where: Fundación Canal, Sala Castellana 214 (Paseo de la Castellana, 214, Madrid)
Hours: Weekdays and holidays, 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Closed on Tuesdays
Price: general admission, €15; reduced rate, €13; groups of 4 or more, €13.50; children under 10, free
How to get there: Plaza de Castilla metro station (L1, L9, and L10)
