By Walyce Almeida

Corral’s photographs often take him away from his home in Quito and lead him to many places all over the world, from the Andes to the Outback.  He has published six books and held many public exhibits, one of them scheduled to take place in the fall at the University of Miami School of Communication, where he spent three months this year as a resident professional at the Knight Center for International Media.  Through the program, Corral printed a selection of 25 photos from his recently published book, showcasing key images he has captured over the past two decades as a photojournalist.  During his short six weeks at the Knight Center Pablo also worked with faculty member Kim Grinfeder and students Cristina Puerto and Matthew Byrnes to develop a social network for Latin American photographers (http://nuestramirada.org.)

Before returning to Ecuador in June, Corral spoke with Walyce Almeida, a graduate student who works at the Knight Center.

Q: How would you evaluate your experience in Miami?

Corral: Being here in Miami has been a great experience.  When I first arrived here, I was really stressed.  I have been running for months and months.  And just being in the same place and sharing with the same people has been a gift, working with the team of the Knight Center.  It has been really a delight.  Also, because I have been able to do things I have an interest in.  I have the feeling I didn’t come to teach but to learn.  And that’s a wonderful thing.  I think I’ve learned a lot.  One of the things we need to learn once and again is that we need to go slower.  We need to go slower to appreciate things that are important. 

Q: What did you learn through the Resident Professional program?

Corral: I think the great thing about this program of resident professionals is that you allow professionals to slow down and do something that they want to do.  And that’s extraordinary because when you’re working you have no time to stop and think.  You’re just working and working and working and traveling and traveling and traveling.  And being in the same place for a few months as a working professional is extraordinary. 

Q: What are you developing through the program?

Corral: I’m doing basically two things: I’m working on a web site about Latin American photography.  It has been very frustrating for me to realize that most Latin American photographers don’t have access to European and American publication.  In Latin America, there are not enough publications that can sponsor bigger projects, photojournalistic projects.  There are some incredible Latin American photographers who have no access to the publications that are giving these bigger assignments.  And I would love to create a bridge between those who are extremely talented and the editors in the U.S. and Europe.  So, that’s basically the web site project.  That’s what I have been working on, creating a bridge.  It’s called Nuestra Mirada, which is our way of seeing, our way of looking at the world.

Q: And the second project is?

Corral: And I’m also printing an exhibit of my own work.  I recently celebrated 25 years of work as a professional.  And I’m just putting together an exhibit that is going to be shown here in Miami, and it’s going to travel around the U.S.  It’s also going to be shown during FotoAmérica in Chile, a big photography festival in the fall.  And I have been editing my work, trying to figure out which pictures that I’ve taken are important, meaningful to me.  My work is not about social issues.  My work is about culture.  My work is about the way we relate to each other.  Again and again, I keep talking about those two basic subjects: love and death.  In a sense, my work, even though it has been mostly done in Latin America, is not about Latin America.  It’s about the human spirit.  I want it to be more universal.  So, I’m reflecting about all these things. 

Q: What are your future projects and plans?

Corral:  I love photography but I don’t think that photography is my only tool to communicate.  I actually enjoy politics a lot.  And I want to get more involved with politics.  I will run for the constitutional, for congress in Ecuador, for the constitutional assembly that we have in Ecuador.  I’m basically working on the construction of a new political party.  There are many things that I’m doing that are connected to politics.  I have a web site that is devoted to politics.  And what I want to do, as a politician, is basically what I have done as a journalist – promote dialogue. 

Q: Finally, what do you think of the Knight Center for International Media?

Corral: The Knight Center is a wonderful institution because it’s bringing people together.  I think the most important task that we can have is just connect people with each other.  That synergy that is created is what brings projects to fruition, to reality.  And I think it is a chance precisely to do that, to dream together, to construct together, to build together.  There are people from different parts of the world.  There are people who are doing all kinds of projects here.  I think we can help each other to grow as professionals and as human beings.