Thousands of people die in drug-related violence every year in México. By using metaphors and visual metonymies to tie together process and subject matter, I explore the idea of perception, memory and transformation. My work is derived from a need to find meaning in these brutal events that re-positions the corpse in our field of vision, reminding us that our physical existence is a temporary one.

Beginning with the idea of erasure as language, I started to create this body of work through the use of a laser-cutter. This is a violent process since it uses, via a computer, the output of a high-powered laser to create cardboard matrices. The cardboard burns through, leaving a layer of soot on the surface allowing me to then transfer it to paper. By only using the burned pigment as the source of mark-making, I am playing with the idea that those events are burned into the consciousness of the city’s inhabitants — leaving unwanted memories though continuous first-hand exposure to these massacres, shaping the way in which they continue to live their life just as the burned residue leaves a permanent imprint on the paper. There is some variation in tones along with different thickness of embossing, once the cardboard matrixes are printed onto paper, which alludes to a more physical degree on the impact of the events – the varying degrees of impact and permanence.

the series consist of 58 images

Selected images


from Cd. Juárez, Chih. México


Inocencia perdida

Process

the same technique was used to create an edition of the series in a smaller format

To see more of the smaller version of this series visit the PRINT EDITIONS gallery