Meet the Residents of Orcasur, Madrid’s Toughest Neighborhood

This article originally appeared on VICE Spain.

Aquellos que Esperan (Those Who Wait) is the result of a two-year journey into Orcasur, southeastern Madrid’s toughest suburb, by photographers Borja Larrondo and Diego Sánchez. It’s an award-winning document of the region and its residents, with close attention paid to the area’s solitary shopping center, which serves as a hub of obscure dealings, a convergence point for the multi-ethnic community, and a provision station for the quiet Orcasur nights.

This district, which is full of occupied houses and communal spaces, was established decades ago as a low income residential area. Its tower blocks stand as monuments to the Spanish social housing experiment—an experiment that, in many ways, turned into some sort of “no-go” area booming with life.

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