Las Marianas General Store. Baradero District, Buenos Aires Province.

Vintage analog print on fiber-based paper. Dimensions: Photograph, 18.58 x 28.4 cm; secondary support, 23.52 x 30.3 cm. Copy number 1/10.

With their unmistakable furnishings, these spaces feature two main types of "actors": those who arrive and those who are already there. Like a waystation on a daily journey, there is always a reason to stop by these places… “Within these walls, you might order a *grappa* while the customer next to you happens to be in need of a pair of *alpargatas* (canvas shoes). Some come for a kilo of flour, only to leave with varnish, paintbrushes, and a coil of barbed wire—all packed into the same cardboard box. Leaning against the counter, you might overhear hushed conversations about improving corn yields, while at another table, bursts of laughter erupt as the winner of a *truco* card game sports an ace of swords stuck to his forehead. There are no screens here; things are tangible—truly so. In this sanctuary of ‘anti-virtuality,’ I chose to forgo digital photography. The photos in this series were taken the old-fashioned way: using black-and-white film, developed and printed on traditional analog paper. In this way, I felt in tune with the atmosphere I was documenting,” explains the author of this work.

Photographer and educator Longoni (Buenos Aires, 1959)—a photojournalist—has participated in both solo and group exhibitions and produced numerous photography books. Notable among these are two titles linked to the Uruguayan poet and novelist Mario Benedetti: *Poemas revelados* (Revealed Poems) and *Utopías en foco* (Utopias in Focus). He has received various national and international awards, and his photographs have appeared in books published across several countries. In 2018, he was the subject of a book published by Fondo de Cultura Económica, authored by Mexican historian Alberto del Castillo Troncoso: “Photography and Memory: Conversations with Eduardo Longoni.”