Valentin Vega #1

Valentín Vega Fernández (1912 - 1997) was a renowned photographer from Asturias.

He grew up and trained in Gijón. His parents were very interested in photography and his brothers ended up also dedicating themselves to photography by setting up their own studios. During the Civil War he was secretary of the UGT in Gijón. He was imprisoned for three years because of his political affiliation.

By 1941 he began visiting the Asturian mining basins, especially the Nalón, as a traveling photographer or "street photographer". In 1951 he moved to El Entregowith, where he opened a photo studio. Here he also worked as a teacher of physical education and athletics since the 60s.

Valentín Vega is especially known for his portraits of the daily life of the mining towns of Asturias in the 40s and 50s: shops, miners, charcoal women, fairs, parks, etc.

Despite his prolific work, only part of his work was saved from the 1941-1951 period (more than 70,000 negatives) by the Asturian People's Museum of Gijón, where it is preserved. Between January and March 2017, the National Museum of Anthropology (Spain) has dedicated an exhibition to him: "Valentín Vega: La Vida por delante".