Carlos Lopez-Barillas
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Carlos Lopez-Barillas is a Guatemalan-born photographer who has been living and working in the United Kingdom since 1996. His work appears regularly in publications like The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Globe, Dallas Morning News. His most recent series of work studies the post-conflict Protestant Community of Northern Ireland, previous work includes the last ten years of the conflict in Northern Ireland, the Zapatista rebel uprising in the Mexican state of Chiapas, and the armed conflicts in Central America.
His work has recently turned more towards the art scene, seeking to voice his views without editorial restrictions, continues within the realm of social documentary.
During his younger years, Carlos spent a short spell working as a fashion photographer for the fashion magazine Amiga, upon closure of the magazine Carlos was offered a post as a news photographer in Prensa Libre, experience which marked the transformation of his work from fashion to reportage, for few years Carlos worked for this local daily, until he was offered a post working for the North American photo news agency The Associated Press.
Carlos continued working for the AP until his subsequent move to live in Europe in 1996, working independently from then on.
Early Life the Lopez-Barillas family is a Guatemalan family with origins in Spain and Switzerland, Carlos is the son of a Carlos Humberto Lopez (1940-2006) and Elsa de Lopez(1942- ) , his father a coffee trade businessman was a famous professional ciclying champion in his younger years, scoring many victories in the tours of Mexico, Central and South America, . During his earlier years Carlos Jr. was always active in sports, first while attending St Sebastian school in Guatemala city, a school with a long tradition in athletics, while he never achieved any mayor victories in athletics, the sport provided him with the foundations for a long sports career later in life.
Sports Carlos started playing sports seriously in his secondary school years, joining his school Basketball team, before the end of his secondary education, he was caught by the skateboarding craze of the 1970, embracing the sport completely from then on.
He went to win several skateboarding competitions, specialisng in pool and vertical riding, he went to win the national aerial championship in 1978 with a recorded 6' high aerial, his interest with board based sports extended into surfing, where he merged his to passions board sports and swimming, Carlos became active in swimming and waterpolo during his university years, first joining the national university USAC team, and later drafted into the Guatemalan National Waterpolo Squad where he played over 100 international caps, between 1980 and 1995, among other victories, he played in the different teams that won the national waterpolo and swimming championships between 1981 until 1995, and won gold medals in the Central American games in the years 1985, 1989, 1993, also gold in the Central American Mexico & Caribbean games 1986, 1990. After his move to Europe he continnued actively playing waterpolo in Ireland, playing with the team Clonard in the 1st division of the Irish Waterpolo League. After he retired from competitive sports in 1998. In 2002 Carlos suffered a serious accident while snowboarding, fracturing his left arm and requiring reconstructive surgery to his left wrist and hand, to date he is still active in recreational Idiocy. Carlos recently admitted to a local newspaper, that as a boy, he wished to become a ballerina.
