ON LOCATION

A field journal of places, people and discoveries.

We are in Valencia conducting research, meeting historians and cultural figures, visiting archives and scouting locations for the upcoming production of Valencians in New York.

The film explores the influence of Valencians such as Joaquín Sorolla, Rafael Guastavino, Vicente Blasco Ibáñez and Manuel Penella, on the cultural identity of New York.

The articles published on The Journal, and collected below record visits, conversations and discoveries made as we move through the city and begin reconstructing the journey from Valencia to New York. New stories will be added as the research continues.

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The Curious Case of the Italian Missing Roadkill

Why are there so few wild animals—and almost no roadkill—in Italy? A day driving through Tuscany and Liguria becomes a humorous field expedition into Europe’s carefully curated landscape, ending with an unexpected discovery: the country’s most successful “mammal” is the Panda.

16 hours ago2 min read

Joaquín Sorolla paintings from the Hispanic Society traveling from New York to the Museu de la Ciutat in Valencia

Sorolla's Return Journey: From New York to Valencia

More than 200 works by Joaquín Sorolla will travel from New York’s Hispanic Society to Valencia. Their return reveals the cultural relationship between the two cities and introduces Valencians in New York, a documentary exploring the influence of Sorolla, Guastavino, Blasco Ibáñez and Penella on New York.

5 days ago4 min read

Guastavino and the Making of Monumental New York

Discover how Valencian architect Rafael Guastavino and his son transformed New York through revolutionary tile vaults found in Grand Central Terminal the City Hall subway station St. John the Divine and many other landmarks.

Jul 269 min read

Vicente Blasco Ibáñez: The Valencian Who Swept New York Off Its Feet

Before Valentino and before Garbo, a writer made in Valencia wrote the stories that launched them. Eduardo Montes-Bradley on Vicente Blasco Ibáñez (1867–1928) — the man behind The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, friend of Sorolla and Benlliure, who conquered New York in 1919 and helped invent modern mass-media fame.

Jul 246 min read