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May 2008

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The memory of Pablo Escobar
By James Mollison

My prior knowledge of Pablo Escobar was limited: that he wore a fantastic mustache, and put Columbia on the map as being the cocaine capital of the world I knew, but little else. So, when I was first handed The Memory of Pablo Escobar, a 350page, 3lb photo log of the coke smuggler’s life I thought, “Dang, this is heavy.”

The Memory of Pablo Escobar (Chris Boot Ltd.) sheds an entirely new light on the man villainized for his ruthless acts as leader of the Medellin Cartel that controlled 80% of the world’s cocaine supply in the ’80s, which as you can imagine was literally tons. In addition to the illuminating text, authors James Mollison and Rainbow Nelson took the unique approach of compiling photos from Escobar’s life according to seven individual collections, the photos accrued during their twenty-two month long period interviewing over 100 people (including Pablo’s now deceased mother, Doña Hermilda). Culled from are archival newspapers, friends or, on the opposite side of the spectrum, people who were devoted to the hunt for the well-known criminal.

One series of photos that stands out in particular is from Escobar’s close friend and schoolmate “El Chino” who was one of the few trusted to visit Hacienda Napoles, the 3,000 hectares estate which housed a zoo with animals smuggled from all over the planet. (One striking photo features Escobar playfully offering an ostrich one of his Marlboros–the ostrich actually holding a cigarette in its beak.) The thorough visual account shows Escobar at his best and worst: as a politician building neighborhoods for the poor, as a fugitive on the run from criminal charges of hundreds of murders (including 11 Columbian supreme court judges) and even up to the end as he lay dead in a pool of his own blood.

The final collection of photos, titled “Aftermath,” takes a look at the effect Escobar had on those around him after his death, including contemporary paintings and photos of many who were influenced by his story. As a true testament to the controversy of his character, the final collection also contains photos from the interiors of homes in Barrio Escobar, many which have framed pictures of the man who made their homes possible. Love him or hate him, for all his nefarious conduct, Escobar took care of his own.

May 2008

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