Me, The Chilean Miners, And Their Children

Yesterday when we showed you Adan Patterson's amazing portraits of the young relatives of the Chilean miners we promised an interview with the man about his time at Camp Esperanza. So here it is.

Vice: Are the kids in your pictures all children of the Chilean miners?
Adam Patterson: Most of them are children of the trapped miners while others are in some way related. The number of kids at Camp Esperanza would fluctuate. At the weekends and holidays cousins and more distant relations would arrive to offer support. During the week many of these families were forced to return home for work and mostly direct family members remained – these are the portraits of the kids that have spent most of the 69 days at the mine.

How did the children cope with the situation?
Kids by their very nature show remarkable resilience. They are intuitive and honest and while some may be too young to comprehend the full context of the situation, they were very much aware that something was wrong. Despite this they continued as only kids can. That's also thanks to volunteers like my friend Raul who hitchhiked 800km to teach at the camp and keep the kids entertained amid the harrowing uncertainty.

Had they managed to send messages or gifts to their dads?
Yes the Paloma system was set up as a lifeline to allow the delivery of food, water and exchange between families and the trapped miners. Relatives would send a wide variety of objects, photographs and letters to which the kids would often include drawings and sketches.

Are kids like these expected to go into mining when they grow up?
Mining does have a generational link through Chilean families. It is common for sons to follow the paths of their fathers. Speaking to the relatives of those trapped below it seems clear there will be an attempt by many to deter these particular children from this livelihood. It remains to be seen whether this will change in time but with copper mining alone providing one third of this Government's revenue, fresh recruits will be in continued demand.

Did you get along with everyone at Camp Esperanza?
My Spanish is appalling and often inhabited me from building a solid bond with many of the adults who would spend most of their time laughing at my mix of hand signals and jumbled sentences. It was different with the kids though; dialogue is less important and hours are easily spent playing football or photographing them drawing or playing games. After five minutes they forget about the camera offering the possibility of capturing very natural moments.

Were their mothers there also?
Yes all of these children were living with relatives at Camp Esperanza. Some lived in the designated family area free from the pressures of the world's media. In this compound 33 tents were constructed allowing one for each family. For larger families relatives would sleep in the general area mixed with the press and volunteers. Meals were provided and even a school built to maintain the children’s academics. This place adopted the feeling of a small town, but it’s all slowing down now following the miners' liberation. The attention has shifted to a nearby hospital where they are being assessed, while the first interviews from the men themselves are drawing ever closer.

Adam Patterson has been in Chile working on a documentary for Panorama, which is airs on Monday night on BBC 1 at 8.30.

VICE STAFF