Xipe & Totec

2017-2019 CDMX

This project considers the relationship between maize, a staple of Mexican food and ceremonial symbol of pre-hispanic México; the history of Xipotec, deity of life, death, resurrection, and agriculture; and? cartel violence in contemporary México. "Xipe y Totec" explores the symbolism of maize as a cultural body in relation to the bodiless skin of Xipotec, "our flayed lord" who, according to legend, skinned himself to feed humankind for the first time. The collection places these symbols and histories of sacrifice, nourishment, and bloodshed in relation to today's cartel massacres, where the interplay of ancient symbols and new, often meaningless objects, is on display.