La exposición “El rostro de los números” llega al Ministerio de Inclusión para visibilizar la trayectoria vital de personas migrantes

The exhibition “The face of numbers”, installed at the headquarters of the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration and promoted by Fundación Cepaim, was born with the aim of putting face, voice and story to the vital trajectories of migrants, refugees and applicants for international protection participating in reception and social inclusion programs. Trajectories that are usually reduced to figures, percentages or statistical discourses.

“Knowing the vital trajectories of migrants is essential to promote inclusive policies that guarantee their rights and promote their full participation in society,” explains Pilar Cancela, Secretary of State for Migration.

Through the combination of photographs, testimonies and citizen participation as tools for social awareness, collective reflection and promotion of intercultural coexistence, “The face of numbers” addresses issues related to refuge, employment, youth, housing, human rights, families or community action, showing not only situations of vulnerability, but also processes of reconstruction, autonomy and social contribution.

“We want to remember the life stories of each of those migrants and each of the refugees we have been working with. This exhibition tries to explore these life trajectories from vulnerability and also from the contributions to Spanish society in economic, labor and social terms,” says Juan Antonio Segura Lucas, general director of Fundación Cepaim.

The project, launched in 2024, is presented within the framework of the actions of visibility of the concerted action linked to the humanitarian reception and international protection programs promoted by the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration and the European Social Fund + (ESF+).

In order to develop the creative process, we have used an extensive itinerary of research, territorial coordination and audiovisual production in different parts of the country, with which around 80 testimonial interviews and a documentary archive composed of more than 1,300 photographs have been carried out.

The curator of the exhibition, Juan Nicolás, highlights that the exhibition “is born from the need to put faces and life stories to the cold figures that we usually handle. Because many times the history of these people does not correspond to the imaginary we have, but they come with an important academic preparation that contributes a lot in our country.”

The exhibition “The face of numbers” is designed to work with educational centers where the visitor can get to know closely how these people have rebuilt their lives contributing a lot to this society.