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    Punctured Photographs by Yael Martínez Illuminate the Daily Ruptures of Systemic Violence

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    “El Hombre y la Montaña” (December 31, 2020). All images courtesy of This Book Is True, shared with permission

    Punctured Photographs by Yael Martínez Illuminate the Daily Ruptures of Systemic Violence

    June 13, 2025

    ArtBooksPhotographySocial Issues

    Grace Ebert

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    The Mexican state of Guerrero lies on the southern Pacific coast and is home to the popular tourist destination of Acapulco. It’s also one of the nation’s most violent areas due to drug trafficking and cartel presence, and is one of six states that account for nearly half of the country’s total homicides.

    For artist and photographer Yael Martínez, the reality of organized crime became more pronounced when, in 2013, three of his family members disappeared. He began to speak with others in his community who had experienced similar traumas and to connect threads across the borders of Mexico to Honduras, Brazil, and the United States.

    “Itzel at home,” Guerrero, Mexico

    Luciérnagas, which translates to fireflies, comes from Martínez’s meditation on this extreme brutality that “infiltrates daily life and transforms the spirit of a place,” a statement says. Now published in a volume by This Book Is True, the poetic series punctures dark, nighttime photographs with minuscule holes. When backlit, the images bear a dazzling constellation of light that distorts the images in which violence isn’t depicted but rather felt.

    In one work, for example, a man holding a firework stands in a poppy field, a perforated cloud of smoke enveloping his figure. He’s performing an annual ritual on the sacred hill of La Garza, and the setting exemplifies a poignant contradiction between ancestral cultures and a crop that has been subsumed by capitalism and is essential to cartel power. A statement elaborates:

    We don’t see death in Luciérnaga, but its omnipresence is felt throughout, lingering in the shadows of each photograph. Each image painfully underwritten by the result of a calculated violence that visited unseen and undetected, leaving behind the immense void of a vanished loved one. And yet there is always a sense of hope that informs the making of this work.

    Luciérnagas is available from This Book Is True. Find more from Martínez on Instagram.

    “Toro” (2018), Guerrero, Mexico

    “Abuelo-Estrella” (December 21, 2020), Cochoapa El Grande, Guerrero, Mexico

    “Levantada de Cruz” (2021)

    “El Río de la Memoria y Mis Hijas” (2022)

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    • 150 Shares159 Views

      in Art

      Einar and Jamex de la Torre’s Monumental Glass Assemblages Hurtle Through ‘Collidoscope’

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      “Oxymodern (Aztec Calendar)” (2002), blown-glass, mixed-media wall installation, 120 x 120 x 12 inches.
      Image courtesy of the Cheech Marin Collection
      and Riverside Art Museum. All images courtesy of the artists and the Corning Museum of Glass, shared with permission

      Einar and Jamex de la Torre’s Monumental Glass Assemblages Hurtle Through ‘Collidoscope’

      December 5, 2024

      ArtCraft

      Kate Mothes

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      In 1972, when Einar and Jamex de la Torre were nine and 12 years old, respectively, their family moved to Southern California from their hometown, Guadalajara, Mexico. Building upon their immigrant experiences and the sometimes contradictory facets of bicultural identity, the artists began creating sculptures and installations exploring themes as varied as time, religion, traditions, and regionalism.

      The pair have collaborated since the 1990s, combining blown glass and mixed media into large-scale wall pieces and striking public art. In the expansive exhibition Collidoscope: de la Torre Brothers Retro-Perspective at the Corning Museum of Glass, the pair present 40 works spanning nearly three decades.

      “Meteorite dall’ Influenza Veneziana” (2024)

      Included in the showcase is a brand new, monumental commission titled “Meteorite dall’ Influenza Veneziana,” which draws on the rich history of Venetian or Murano glass.

      While only pieces produced on the small Italian island can bear the name of Murano—think Champagne in the wine world or Parmigiano Reggiano for cheese—the de la Torre brothers revel in the idea that “once [the technique] escaped, it hit the glassblowing world like a meteorite,” Einar says.

      The de la Torre brothers are known for their additive approach, layering both meaning and material into meticulous assemblages. Vibrant colors and sometimes ironic details, like symbols for a car battery or engine light, emerge when encountered up close, then dissolve into energetic patterns when viewed from a distance.

      Detail of “Meteorite dall’ Influenza Veneziana”

      Today, the duo split their time between San Diego and the Guadalupe Valley of Baja California, Mexico, and the occasionally humorous interplay of American and Mexican motifs hold a sustained role in their practice. Many pieces incorporate motifs specific to Mexico, like the iconic, circular Aztec calendar that combines a 365-day cycle with a 260-day ritual or spiritual cycle. Mechanical gears, shells, religious iconography, anatomy, and more, merge in their maximalist compilations.

      The brothers created the new work in the Corning Museum’s studio, and the idea for incorporating Venetian details like cane work arose organically around the hot shop team’s experience with the style. “An artist’s job is to get away with their vision,” Einar says, “and we were very gratified and surprised at how much support we had for our ideas for this commission.”

      Collidoscope continues through January 5 in Corning, New York. Find more on the artists’ website.

      Detail of “Meteorite dall’ Influenza Veneziana”

      “Frijolera Clásica” (2010), bown-glass, mixed-media sculpture, 31 x 18 x 18 inches. Image courtesy of Crocker Art Museum

      “Mitosis” (2008), blown-glass and mixed-media with resin castings and waterjet-cut aluminum frame, 48 x 48 x 9 inches. Image courtesy of the artists and Koplin Del Rio Gallery

      “En Cada Arbol una Cruz” (2000), blown-glass, mixed-media sculpture, 28 x 21 inches. Image courtesy of the artists and Koplin Del Rio Gallery

      Corning Museum of Glass staff work with the de la Torre brothers to install “Meteorite dall’ Influenza Veneziana”

      The de la Torre brothers construct glass installation components in the Amphitheater Hot Shop of the Corning Museum of Glass

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    • 125 Shares189 Views

      in Street Art

      “Guardianes del Agua” by Adry del Rocio in Chiapas, Mexico

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      Perched on the steep face of the Chicoasén Dam in Chiapas, Mexico, Adry del Rocío’s latest mural brings the structure to life with vibrant imagery and deep meaning. The mural, spanning 120 x 200 meters, depicts of a child cradling a glowing source of water surrounded by colorful parrots, honors both the natural beauty of Chiapas and the workers of the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE). These workers have maintained the dam, a vital source of clean energy, since 1974.Adry’s mural is a symbolic celebration of life, harmony, and the rich biodiversity of the region. The parrots, native to Chiapas, soar across the mural, representing the freedom and abundance of the land, while the child symbolizes the future generations tasked with preserving this balance. In her artist statement, Adry describes the mural as a tribute to the “mystical heirs” of this legacy, those who work tirelessly to sustain Mexico’s clean energy.Collaborating with CFE Nacional and Privativo Social Strategy, Adry’s mural not only brightens the dam but serves as a reminder of the importance of sustainability and environmental stewardship. The project was a team effort, with Adry expressing gratitude to her brother Carlos Alberto and the many others who helped bring this ambitious vision to life.Adry del Rocío, a globally recognized street artist, has received more than 60 awards throughout her career. Her work on the Chicoasén Dam stands as a vibrant testament to the power of art to celebrate both culture and clean energy in Mexico.(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); More

    • 113 Shares129 Views

      in Street Art

      “Amor” by It’s A Living in Mexico City, Mexico

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      It’s A Living just recently worked on his latest AR mural, “Amor”  in the heart of Mexico City  This mural has a QR code that when scanned has a secret augmented reality filter.Ricardo Gonzalez alias It’s A Living is a designer, and artist from Durango, México. His signature script style can be easily recognized from large scale murals to commercial work for some of the biggest brands to a simple sticker in the streets.Take a look below for more photos of “Amor” Photo credits: @juliobohorquezmx & @veekmx More

    • 188 Shares189 Views

      in Art

      Rael San Fratello’s Pink Teeter-Totters at the U.S.-Mexico Border Win Beazley Design of the Year

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      Art
      Design

      #border
      #interactive
      #Mexico
      #playgrounds
      #public art

      January 19, 2021
      Grace Ebert

      The three neon pink seesaws that slotted through the U.S.-Mexico border were just named the 2020 Beazley Design of the Year. Conceived by Oakland-based artists Ronald Rael and Virginia San Fratello (previously), the playful, subversive project was installed in July 2019 between El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez and physically connected the two communities despite the 20-foot barrier. The prestigious, annual award comes from London’s Design Museum.
      Rael and San Fratello spent a decade working on “Teeter-Totter Wall” before its installation at the border during a particularly divisive time under the Trump administration. Although it was in use for less than an hour, the interactive work intended to foster and display unity between children and adults from both countries as they physically lifted each other up. In response to the administration separating families at the border, Rael wrote about the project:
      The teeter-totters represented the kind of balance necessary for any two people, two nations, to achieve equality, with the understanding that the actions on one side have direct consequences on the other. The teeter-totter is the physical manifestation of the Golden Rule—treat others as you would like others to treat you—a maxim that is shared by all cultures and religions. To experience joy on a teeter-totter, you must allow the other person to experience joy as well.
      Among the other winners are a 3D rendering of SARS-CoV-2 by Alissa Eckert and Dan Higgins for the CDC and Social Design Collaborative’s “ModSkool,” a moveable building that can be easily assembled and taken down in response to evictions of farming communities in India. Check out all the top designs through the museum’s virtual exhibition that runs until March 28, and head to Rael San Fratello’s site and Instagram to see more of the duo’s socially minded projects.

      #border
      #interactive
      #Mexico
      #playgrounds
      #public art

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