Lensculture Magnum photography awards official entry number 2

This photo was taken in the UNESCO city of Trinidad, Cuba at the end of a hot day in 2011. We had travelled there on a last minute trip as we had started to hear that it was changing and capitalism was starting to seep into the culture. We were, selfishly, happy to see it hadn't really changed. I say selfish because it remained as we had always imagined, beautiful cars, crumbly buildings and a photographers dream. However after a week of staying with local people in Casas we discovered that despite the free education, housing and healthcare people weren't happy. Our broken Spanish only gave us a brief insight into the daily lives of the Cuban people; it was one of frustration. The frustration with being controlled on a daily basis. The inability to advance because you couldn't afford the cost of paint or the shops were empty even if you could. But things were starting to change and this photo shows The silhouette of a young boy as he packs down his make shift tourist stall in the setting sun. While his stall was pretty empty, the juxtaposition of fixed bars and easily manipulated cloth represented the changing landscape in the city of Trinidad, Cuba. Things were changing and if we went back now we would expect to see more fixed stalls and fuller shops. Will the people be happier? Who knows, we hope so.