Cristina García Rodero began photographing—with an adolescent passion she has never lost—the festivals, rituals, and liturgies that she, like many others, believed would vanish from rural Spain with the impending end of the Franco regime. They were mistaken. If there is one day each year when cities empty out and villages overflow, it is August 15th—the Feast of the Assumption. Born of fifteen years of effort and sacrifice, *España Oculta* (Hidden Spain)—the defining book of her career—was published in 1989; it propelled her to the forefront of the international photography scene and transformed the destiny of the publishing house Lunwerg.
 
Across all the awards and accolades she has received, no one has captured—over such a long period—so many moments reflecting the country's traditional, grassroots soul. Hers is a timeless black-and-white imagery that bears witness to the most primal aspects of the human spirit: faith, the desire to celebrate life, and the urge to ward off death.