On a quiet street in Madrid's Valdezarza district, 90-year-old José Antonio Mateo spends his days hunched over a black X-ray, scalpel in hand, coaxing images from darkness. For half a century, Mateo, known simply as Mateo, has practiced a technique so unusual that even he struggled to name it. His collection of more than 600 works reflects a lifetime of patient, precise work, shaped by quiet new idea.
Mateo calls his method "grapel," a blend of "grabado" (engraving) and "película" (film). It began with a moment of curiosity at the hospital where he worked as an electronics technician. Passing stacks of discarded, fully blackened X-rays, he wondered what would happen if he scratched their surface. The result was a spectrum of tones, depending on the pressure applied. That discovery would shape the next five decades of his life. In a Cadena SER account of the technique, Mateo recalled taking a scalpel to blackened X-rays and discovering that the marks revealed different shades.
From Zamora to Madrid
Born in Puebla de Sanabria, Zamora, in 1936, Mateo's early years were marked by upheaval. He lost his father during the Spanish Civil War and spent his childhood moving between relatives in Galicia, León and Extremadura. Later, he sought work in France and Germany before settling in Madrid, drawn by the promise of employment.
His professional life was rooted in electronics. Mateo repaired radios and televisions, and also worked on transistors. He was among the first in his field to join Spain's Social Security system. Eventually, he found work at Hospital Universitario La Paz, maintaining monitors in intensive care and cardiac units. When his supervisor moved to the newly built Hospital Universitario 12 de Octubre, Mateo followed, overseeing the distribution of electronic equipment across departments. His work maintaining medical electronics, including equipment associated with X-ray imaging, formed the technical backdrop to his later experiments with radiographic film.
The Birth of Grapel
Mateo's artistic journey began in the hospital's radiology department. With blackened X-rays before him, along with cardboard and surgical scalpels, he experimented with scratching the film. He soon realized he could control the intensity of each mark, developing a scale of 17 distinct tones: 12 in the emulsion layer and 5 in the plastic base. The technique required a steady hand and the ability to "think in reverse": every stroke removed material, revealing light from darkness.
"You need a very steady hand, to think backwards, and infinite patience," Mateo says. Some pieces took him up to nine months to complete, with no room for error: once a mark is made, it cannot be undone. In five decades, he claims to have ruined only one work. Information from Cadena SER, he still draws with a scalpel every day and has expressed concern that no younger artist is taking up the method.
Inside the Creative Process
Each artwork begins with a detailed pencil sketch on cardboard. Mateo then transfers the design onto the X-ray, carefully matching each area to the right tone. The process is unforgiving: starting from a black background, he gradually removes layers to reveal the image. Most pieces take about a month, but the most complex can require much longer; some of his works have taken more than a year.
Among his most ambitious works are large-scale depictions of the Plaza del Obradoiro in Santiago de Compostela and the Acueducto de Segovia, each over two meters tall and composed of multiple X-rays. Mateo has singled out the Obradoiro scene as especially demanding, citing the many sculptures and details on the cathedral's façade. Over the years, he has collaborated with companies such as Kodak and Fujitsu, which have exhibited his works at international symposia in cities including Tokyo and New York.
Exhibition in Valdezarza
Until June 26, a selection of Mateo's works is on display at the Parroquia Cena del Señor, just across the street from his home. The choice of venue is personal: a decade ago, his art adorned the church's walls, and this time he dedicates the exhibition to his neighbors and friends. The show features architectural scenes and animals, with the solar system also represented. Some subjects, such as nudes, are omitted out of respect for the setting. Mateo has repeatedly sought an exhibition for his engravings, making the neighborhood show a impressive chance to present his work publicly.
Visitors are encouraged to look beyond the finished image and appreciate the process: each shade results from a different pressure, and each detail is the product of hours of careful work. In an age of digital shortcuts, Mateo's art reflects the value of craft and patience.
Why He Refuses to Sell
Despite receiving offers for his pieces, Mateo refuses to put a price on his art. "People tell me I could make a lot of money, but I don't want to. I have enough to eat, a house in the country and an apartment by the sea. What more could I want?" he says. For him, the value is personal. His two children come first, but he says discovering this technique has been the most impressive thing in his life after family.
Thanks to his collaborations, Mateo has never lacked materials: companies have supplied him with boxes of X-rays in exchange for his participation in exhibitions. As he approaches a century of life, his work continues to draw quiet admiration for its technical mastery and singular vision.
