honorable mention
Matt Leedham united states
title
Las Personas del Basurero
Those that work the basurero have formed a shanty-town on the landfill’s edge. These images depict their living conditions and what they do to make ends meet, like the couple that picks shoes from the trash to refurbish and resell. Or the young man who picks and rebuilds old mattresses from the trash, but who’s true passion is music (he built his make-shift studio from recycled materials). The older gentleman on the bike just finished cleaning a tomb in the Cemeterio General (if relatives don’t pay annual rent for the deceased, their loved one’s remains are exhumed and discarded).
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entry description
In the center of Guatemala City, Zona 3 is home to the city’s main dump, or basurero. With a growing population and limited economic opportunities, local residents spend their days picking trash and recycling what they find for little more than $1 per day.Those that work the basurero have formed a shanty-town on the landfill’s edge. These images depict their living conditions and what they do to make ends meet, like the couple that picks shoes from the trash to refurbish and resell. Or the young man who picks and rebuilds old mattresses from the trash, but who’s true passion is music (he built his make-shift studio from recycled materials). The older gentleman on the bike just finished cleaning a tomb in the Cemeterio General (if relatives don’t pay annual rent for the deceased, their loved one’s remains are exhumed and discarded).
back to gallery