Senén Germade's series 'Habelas Hainas' explores the real and the magical of the Galician landscape.
Habelas Hainas is a story about Vikings, medieval warriors, forgotten monasteries inhabited by Cistercians monks, ‘sirens’ and sailors. A story about aloitadores, those brave men and women who perform spectacular battles with wild horses in order to cut their manes and the fishermen who capture strange sea creatures like those featuring two eyes, three hearts and four pairs of arms.
It’s also a story that embraces legends, myths, folktales, history and, of course, traditions. I can mention the cigarrón wearing his distinctive mask and an amazing costume, the sanroquiños, the galáns or the popular bagpipers. It’s the everyday of a region with landscapes that have the ability to transport you in time: dolmens, castros that belong to the Celtic culture, graves, castles, enchanting forests, mysterious rivers, hidden beaches, magic islands…
This is a story about life and death and everything that moves around these two terms. Faith, religion, beliefs, incredulity, paganism, witchcraft, mystery, superstition… It’s the representation of a place where everything, even the supernatural, can be possible. As the popular saying states:
‘Eu non creo nas meigas, mais habelas, hainas’ (I don´t believe in witches, but they exist).
In the end, this is an enigmatic and poetic tale of a marvelous tiny land where the real turns magical and the magical becomes real. Reality and fiction merge together to form one new perspective. Or perhaps it’s just a very personal document of my home, Galicia, and its people at the end of 2014.
See here for more about Senén Germade work.
