Tijuana Triennial: I. International Pictorial

Tijuana Cultural Center - October 2021 – February 2022

Installation selected as part of the Triennial. Project En Casa

In March 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic reached Mexico, forcing the nation into home confinement. As a borderland photographer with a lesbian identity, my goal was to document these times through the unique lens of my own experience. I began taking photographs to highlight that, as segregated individuals, our cases are often overlooked in official reports, with our families and identities rendered invisible by statistics. I wanted to emphasize that, during the confinement of staying at home, we are hidden, as are most people with LGBTIQ+ identities in society at large.

I decided to travel to various cities in Mexico in search of others like me who were concealed by the pandemic. My aim was to document these moments of isolation, and thus, the Lenchas y Marimachas En Casa project was born. This project focuses on individuals who identify as women, including lesbian, bisexual, queer, transgender, and non-binary women. The composition of each photograph is the same—a view from two meters away, featuring subjects in front of their homes, wearing masks.

The photographs are powerful in their focus on the visibility of a community often relegated to the shadows. The experience of being seen during the photography process becomes a moment of visibility and more. It instills a sense of pride in being seen, inspiring subjects to prepare for their sessions.

When planning a visit to a new city, news of the opportunity to be photographed often spreads through podcasts and local organizations, but primarily by word-of-mouth. Subjects ponder what to wear, how to pose, and whether to include family members, pets, signs, and flags. Each photograph tells a story of resistance, resilience, and self-honor. There is validation in being photographed and knowing that even in isolation, they are part of the community that the project represents.