As I first entered the exhibition, I noticed all the wonderfully placed photograph on the walls and as I got to the center of these photographs it was all telling a story. I looked around the room and I notice struggle, sorrow, desperation and just a few glimpse of happiness. In the exhibition, the structure of the place was unique, and it led you to one path to go on, watching each photograph carefully. It was set up in a way to show different places and situations that occur in Mexico. Although the photographs did create a story in their unique ways, I was also interested with the walls in Aperture. Some were colored Red or Yellow, and I wondered if the photograph corresponded with the color of the wall. Would it have made the person feel different about it or the same? I wasn’t sure but it was surely had an interesting feel to it. I visited a lot of Museums and worked as a tour guide at the Rubin Museum and I never saw a setup such as that one, so it would be interesting if they purposely made those background part of the photography.
As I looked at the photographs, I noticed a common feature, not all felt the same way of course but most of them felt depressing. Just imagining being in that setting and actually calling it home is quiet sad. I think Alex is trying to portray his Mexico as a place that is struggling but the strength that these people have for making it this far. Most of them don’t seem happy, but they are prepared and have faith. What I got from looking at these photographs are people that are strong and willing to live a better life, I remember this one photograph of a child perhaps, hoping over a border, it showed me how much they want to live a better life and I think that’s what Alex is trying to show.
As i mentioned before, of the photograph of a kid or teenager jumping over a border is my favorite one I have to say. The reason why is because of the perspective and leading lines. The lines lead to a dark foggy area, which gives it a mysterious feeling to it. It also feels never ending, it feels like the leading lines is a journey, and I compared that journey to the kid jumping off the border. The journey was so long and never ending and so now he is stuck in a foggy place. Blind to the world and seems like there’s no opportunity to escape from it. Just from the leading lines I made so many interpretations to what Alex was trying to portray or depict. out of all of the photographs in the exhibition, that one stood out the most to me. The amount of gray shown in the picture is astonishing because the clouds are creating that effect to it. It seems like the clouds are not above the kid but slowly getting towards him.
The photo you selected to discuss is really interesting in that we see so little of the person escaping over the wall. and we see nothing of what he is jumping into only what is being left behind. the perspective takes our eye deep into the fog, away from the leg going over the fence, into desolation.
Did you see the Steve McCurry show at the Rubin? The exhibition design used deep colors on the walls and beautifully complimented the photography. I think the few painted walls stand out at Aperture because the rest of the gallery is so starkly white.