Skadi Jennicke, the Culture delegate for the Leipzig City Council, has sent a request to her counterpart in Madrid, Marta Rivera de la Cruz, to promote a Robert Capa center in the Entrevías neighborhood. The initiative aims to replicate the spirit of the Capa Haus, a museum in Leipzig commemorating the Hungarian photographer's work at the very site where he captured his famous image, Photograph of the Last Man to Die.
The document from Leipzig emphasizes the importance of creating a similar space at Peironcely 10, where Capa documented the Francoist bombings during the Civil War, immortalizing a devastated house and the vulnerability of children. This location has already been designated a Place of Democratic Memory.
“"It is about bravely setting the necessary course to promote, in the spirit of the Peironcely 10 project, the creation of a citizen-driven Robert Capa Center."
The letter highlights the parallel between Capa's work in Leipzig, depicting the liberation from fascism in 1945, and his documentation of the bombing aftermath in Madrid in 1936. In both cities, citizens have played a crucial role in advocating for the preservation of these historic sites.
The Capa Haus in Leipzig, a result of collaboration between civil initiatives and the City History Museum, has become a European benchmark for memory culture, attracting thousands of visitors annually. Leipzig's Culture official believes that Peironcely 10 possesses similar authenticity and could benefit from a network of cultural exchange.
However, the Madrid City Council's proposal to transform the Peironcely site into a Robert Capa Cultural Experimentation Center, managed by the José María de Llanos Foundation and focused on youth activities, has not convinced memory platforms. These associations, united under #SalvarPeironcely10, have consistently advocated for a first-rate museum honoring the memory of the bombings and the neighborhood.
The International Center of Photography, supported by Leipzig's Capa Haus, has criticized what it perceives as the "historical erasure" implied by the municipal project, prohibiting the use of the photographer's image in initiatives without the approval of #SalvarPeironcely10. The area has been a symbol for the recovery of memory through cultural activities and archaeological campaigns, and the question now is whether the new youth center will adequately honor its historical significance.
