During my many years of living on this captivating island of Ibiza, I have amassed a photograph library of high-quality rare and unique black-and-white and colour images of the island's talented artists, distinctive characters, landscapes, countryside, wildflowers, trees, almond blossam, animals, houses, churches, folk dancing, fiestas, seascapes, and sunsets. I have also captured an exclusive selection of photographs focused on the traditional way of life of the gentle (eivissa pagésos - pagesé) folk of the land - wearing age-old traditional dress, tilling their precious land, and tendering to their livestock, these are now unique photograph images which cannot be captured ever again because that past golden era of a former inherited way of life have now disappeared from the island, for good.
In late October 1982 I began a daily routine in which mornings were devoted to office duties and the afternoons were dedicated to exploring the ever-enigmatic Ibizan countryside. I was accompanied with two trusty Nikon cameras along with an assortment of top-quality Nikon lenses packed into my study Billingham canvas bag which sat next to me on the front passenger seat of my Ford. My titanium Nikon F was loaded with Ilford Professional 100 black-and-white negative film, and my Nikon F3 held Kodachrome 25 or 64 or else Fujichrome Velvia 50 colour deiapositive film.
I strayed far from the beaten track, venturing deep into the island's hinterland in search of unpedictable eye-catching pictures of the island's authentic rural way of life. I attended annual village fiestas to secure photographs of Ibiza's distinctive folk danncing (ball pagès), especially my favourite three fiestas scheduled to be held annually at Sant Vicente de sa Cala (5th April), Sant Joan de Labritja (24th June) and Sant Llorenç de Balàfia (10th August).
I was indeed fortunate to catch the spectacular light of landscapes, seascapes and sunsets at specific times of day and of the year, and especially privileged to circulate calmly, almost unnoticed, amongst the rural folk as I recorded on film their treasured customs and folkways.
Tuesday 15th January 1991, a special invitation came my way to attend and photograph throughtout the day's event a winter pig-slaughtering (sa matançe des porc) feast at Can Mestre, in the countryside of Sant Antoni de Portmany. This involved mingling with a deeply rooted (Ibicencos autóctonos) family from dawn to dusk and beyond, celebrating the annual ceremony that would yield two emmblematic delicacies: sobrassada (paprika cured sauage) and botifarra (blood sausage, like black pudding) - vital winter sustenance which would feed the family throghout the long months ahead.
At the turn of the millennium I invested in a Nikon SF-200 Auto Slide Feeder diapositive slide and negative film scanner and set about choosing to carefully scan and digitalize a wide variety of rare and unique images, black-and-white and colour, with a view to making a final selection for a forthcoming dual-language (English / Spanish) Ibiza Picture Book.
In the black-and-white and colour photgraph sections there are nine sub-sectons, each containing numbered photographic images: Eivissa Pagesés (Ibicenco Countrywomen), Eivissa Pagésos (Ibicenco Farmers), Eivissa Ball Pagès (Folk Dancing), Eivissa Campo (Countryside), Eivissa Mar (Sea and Coastline), Eivissa Es Vedrá (Iconic Rock), Eivissa Iglesisa (Rual Churches), Eivissa Posta de Sol (Sunsets), and Eivissa Ses Matançe des Porc (Pig-Slaughtering Ceremony). The tenth black-and-white and colour sections: Eivissa Miscellabeous, features a wide-ranging selection of numbered images which will be regularly updated, offering a continuous range of rare and unigue photograph durable prints for sale.
I was busy scanning images one morning at my central Sant Antoni office, when our 'An Anthropological View' columnist, Kirk W Huffman, came in and commented, "Hardy, your problem is you store and hide away this important work when it should be out there for people to see." But this was at the beginning of the world-wide-web superhighway, and the time still wasn't right, as most of my images were unpreared, and in any case, I was in no rush. The colour diapositives and black-and-white negative films weren't perishable and were safely stored, and they would eventually come into their own in years to come. My rare and unique photograph images are now ready, I am happy to say, and the time has finally arrived for them to be published online - 'out there for people to see and appreciate there images.'
With hindsight and in view of my passion for photography and Ibiza, it almost seems as if it was fate which brought me to this legendary island to witness and capture on film to document the final decades of a vanishing golden era of the gentle (eivissa pagésos - pagesés) folk of the land.
Materials matter when it comes to art and photograph prints. I have chosen to offer a selection of three photgraph print sizes with a choice of three types of high-quality photographic durable print papers.
Bonus offer for fine-art photograph printing.
GICLÉE EPSON ULTRACHROME photograph printing technique uses pigment-based inks that are fade-resistant and display exceptional details with a wider range of vibrant colours offering superior image quality and longevity that will stand the test of time. Giclée printing brings photograph enhanced images and resolution details to life with stunning exhibition and museum-quality fine-art ultra-high digital glossy and matte photograph results. Giclée photograph prints are wear-resistance to sumudges, sunlight and moisture. They are precisely sharper and more detailed even when viewed up close. Perfect for artists, connoisseurs and anyone wanting to highlight photographs on a premium, photographic durable print paper.
Giclée glossy or matte high-quality photograph prints can be ordered by choosing one of three photographic durable print papers offered in the detailed prices section: Satin 270 grams glossy: Cotton Ultramate 320 grams matte: Braryta Prestige 340 grams glossy:
Although Ibiza over the years has become a summer holiday brand name for rave culture even today, there are still pockets of recollective magic waiting to be discovered on this enchanting island of Ibiza.
I believe anyone who buys an original 'Ibiza History Culture' high-quality photograph durable print is getting more than a picture of outstanding documentary and aesthetic importance; they are also acquiring a unique investment of a photographic fine-art piece.
Gary Hardy
October 2024
Click on any image and it will automatically enlarge, with an arrow either side for you to continue browsing the photograph archieve, moving forward or backward without having to close each individual picture.
SATIN 270 grams: High-Quality Glossy Photograph Durable Print Paper
| Print Sizes: | 20 x 30 | 30 x 40 | 40 x 60 |
| Print Prices: | 100.00 € | 125.00 € | 150.00 € |
COTTON ULTRAMATE 320 grams: High-Quality Matte Photograph Durable Print Paper
| Print Sizes: | 20 x 30 | 30 x 40 | 40 x 60 |
| Print Prices: | 125.00 € | 150.00 € | 175.00 € |
BARYTA PRESTIGE 340 grams: High-Quality Glossy Photograph Durable Print Paper
| Print Sizes: | 20 x 30 | 30 x 40 | 40 x 60 |
| Print Prices: | 150.00 € | 175.00 € | 200.00 € |
GICLÈE EPSON ULTRACHROME: Photograph Durable Print Papers: SATIN 270 grams glossy: COTTON ULTRAMATE 320 grams matte: BARYTA PRESTIGE 340 grams glossy:
| Print Sizes: | 20 x 30 | 30 x 40 | 40 x 60 |
| Print Prices: | 175.00 € | 200.00 € | 225.00 € |
Photograph Print Prices Include Shipping.
All Photographs © Gary Hardy
