Women in The Heights - Resistance - 3/8/18

"Women in the Heights - Resistance" Featuring the work of 28 women artists of Uptown Manhattan. Curated by Andrea Arroyo.

"Women in the Heights - Resistance" Featuring the work of 28 women artists of Uptown Manhattan. Curated by Andrea Arroyo.

Showing love to Uptown on International Women's Day! I was proud to be part of this group exhibition titled "Women in the Heights - Resistance" presented by the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance, Broadway Housing Communities and The Sugar Hill Children's Museum of Art and Storytelling. The show took place at Rio II Gallery in New York, NY on March 8-28, 2018, curated by Andrea Arroyo. The opening reception was on March 8th, 2018 from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

Artist Talks were held on the closing night of March 28th, 2018. 
See the event recap for the Artist Talk here.
 

About the Exhibition: 
In celebration of Women’s History Month The Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance in partnership with Broadway Housing Communities and The Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art and Storytelling present the exhibition "Women in the Heights - Resistance" Featuring the work of 28 women artists of Uptown Manhattan. Curated by Andrea Arroyo. 

Participating Artists: 
Vivian Abuelo
Gloria Adams
Abigail Arguilla
Julie Berman
Chelsea Best
Lenore Browne
Rose Deler
Wilhelmina Obatola Grant
Yeiry Guevara
C'naan Hamburger Selina Hernandez
Maggie Hernandez
Andrea Kornbluth
Lilia Levin
Najá Lewis
Marne Lucas
Nancy Mercado
Alexandra Momin
Ashanti Muniz
Rosa Naparstek
Nancy Palubniak
Nancy Rakoczy
Diana Schmertz
Tasuyo Tanaka
Joana Toro
Ruth Valdez
Tamara Wasserman

Eventbrite Page
NoMAA Website
Facebook Event
Event Photographer, Michael Palma

Opening Night Photos & Video

Platos Fuertes de Tia Lena

Tuve la linda oportunidad de pasar un fin de semana con mi familia en Memphis, Tennessee en los fines de enero 2018. De tantos Tios y Tias que tengo, son pocas las memorias de infancia que tengo con ellos. Cómo muchos de nosotros salvadoreños que somos de familias grandes, la triste realidad es que el tiempo y la distancia desafortunadamente hacen las familias más pequeñas. Mi Tia Lena ha sido la Tia con quien tengo muchísimas memorias de esa época feliz de niñez. Ella es la hermana mayor de mi papá y llegaron al mismo tiempo a este país. Crecieron sus hijos juntos y rodeados con mucho amor.

Los caminos de las vida nos tocaron diferente rumbos, pero a pesar de la millas de distancia en geografía, siempre seguimos unidos. El amor entre familia corre profundamente en la legacía de estos hermanitos. 

Mi Tia Lena ha sido una fuente de inspiración, fé y amor para mi desarrollo. Tuve la hermosa oportunidad de pláticar con ella, aprender su sabiduría y comer un cachimbo de chicharrones y tortillas hechas a mano. Ademas de ser tan sabia, mi Tia es un maravilla en la cocina. Ella le pone tanto cariño en cada cucharada que sirve. La comida tiene un sabroso toque a la experiencia, como de un chile que no se puede comprar. Cuando estábamos en la cocina, me quedaba admirada a su facilidez con el aceite caliente, con su agilidad en cómo palmeaba las tortillas para hechar al comal. Me ponía a pensar de cuantas tortillas había hecho en su vida, de todos los buches que se han llenado con sus tortillas. Nuestras pláticas empezaban en la cocina. La cocina siempre ha representado un espacio sagrado en el hogar, adonde las mujeres pueden compartir y aprender de una a otra en un ambiente sano y salvo. 

Unas de las pasadas que cuenta mi papá es cuando pasaron tiempos duros en Honduras, antes de la guerra de 1969 cuando muchos Salvadoreños vivían y trabajaban en Honduras. Mi Tia Lena, apenas de la edad de 13 años, ya podía hacer un almuerzo para su hermanos con sólo 10 centavos. Lena compraba 2 centavos de chacaras (unos guineos/plátanos gordos). Después con los 8 centavos de sobra, compraba asientos (los pedacitos de chicharrones de puerco, bien fritos que sobran en el aceite) y huaraches (un tipo de pan dulce) para comer con un cafecito. Ella también era buena para pescar chacalines en la quebrada, para que su hermanitos no comieran la tortilla sola. 

Mi Tia Lena demuestra su amor y cariño atravez de su comida. Cada tortilla hecha a mano, cada quesadilla horneada, lleva la tradiciones de su madre, su abuela y todas las mujeres valientes de nuestra familia. Me sentí chiflada con tanta sabrosura en mi visita con Tia que decidí dedicar éste ensayo a la maravilla que es ella, de lo que representa su comida y las fuerzas que ella demuestra en su ser.

Cuando sea grande, quiero ser como mi Tia Lena. 

Toda La Sabrosura

Mami Made

Mami Made is the sewing craft line I run with my Mom. Mami has sewn all her life. She learned  this necessary life skill while growing up in the rural countryside of El Salvador.  Her mother taught her to stitch as well as the insightful tactic of looking at fragmented pieces then making something out of it.  I write in further detail about Mami's handmade magic in My Mother's Hands.

The idea behind Mami Made was that Mami has always made beautiful practical things for me. After a night of listening to the purr of her sewing machine, my light bulb blinked on:  why not share her craft with the world? She thrives in the process of creating something from thread and fabric. My sister is an Art Therapist so the process of making art to heal runs in the family. Mami glows when she gives that item to its new owner. Mami Made is a way to nurture my Mother's creative spirit and share her craft.  

Below is a visual appreciation of the love that Mami stitches in each of her craft. Whether she's making my prom dress, a princess dress for her granddaughter, a vintage style cocktail dress to fit all my curves, Mami pours her humble love in every inch.

Thanks again to Remezcla for showcasing Mami Made. 

Tamale Gif Set

It has been years since I made tamales with my Mom. Mostly because it's very labor intensive and requires a crew for the assembly line folding. For Christmas 2017, we decided to make the jump and go for it.

With just Mom and I, we managed to stay up all night and made over 100 tamales. Well, I lost count but easily around that number. We peeled garbanzos, chopped potatoes, cleaned farm-raised chickens, all surrounded by anecdotes that started "cuando mi mamá lo hacia asi". The hours in the kitchen provided us the safe space to chat, share chisme and I learned how generations of women in our family cooked. Tamales brought us together and when cooked, they bring people together in a damn delicious way.  Radio Pulgarcito provided the perfect soundtrack to our midnight cooking session. 

In between roasting banana leaves, mixing the masa and getting the achiote spice just right, I managed to capture her movements with a few gifs. 

I definitely teared up when I had my first set of cooked tamales. You can taste our hard work. You can taste the levels of complexities. You can taste how every ingredient makes a melody to this sweet song in your mouth. Tamales are our family history wrapped up in a banana leaf. Savor it. 

The finished product:

Betty Valentine Art + Craft Market - 2/10/18

Betty_Valentine2018

My first vending market of 2018! Very cool to get all romantica and stuff at the Betty Valentine Art + Craft Market on February 10th, 2018 at Secret Project Robot. 

Displayed new Mami Made + Just Plush Play crafts as well. Very exciting since Mami Made just got featured in Remezcla too. Thank you everyone who came out! Check out the event snaps below. 

Participating Vendors:
♥ Bidi Bidi Pom Pom
♥ The Bettys
♥ Bunny Lees World
♥ GRL TRBL
♥ Haywillouis
♥ It's Not Personal
♥ Jennifer Calandra
♥ Kelsey Zigmund
♥ Margot Terc
♥ Panty Hoes
♥ Pop Aesthete
♥ Prayers Zine
♥ Sarvnaz Press
♥ Snatch Magazine
♥ Spicy Mango Comics (jpmata.com | draizys.com | Rachellejade.com)
♥ Thinking In Full Color
♥ Voort Boom Jewelry// The 10th House
♥ Vos Cipota + The Savior by Yeiry Guevara

Facebook Event Page

Unlearning My Sex Shame & Other Kinks

“Si vienes con una pata más larga que la otra, mejor ni vengas / if you come home knocked up, don’t even bother coming home,” my mother’s reaction when she found out that I held hands with Coco, my high school boyfriend. He was quiet, white and the first boy to actually ask me out. Naturally, my tomboy dweeb self was over the Coco moon. The one time I actually let him walk me to the public school bus, my Mom picked me up by surprise and caught me Coco-handed. She held her anger the whole drive home back to our immigrant, working-class barrio. The sex-shame volcano exploded once we got home.

Nada de Naranjas

Unlearning is 

a real team effort

a work in progress

She obviously thought the worst: that I’m going to get pregnant, that I’ll drop out of school, that I’ll ruin my whole life if I am in the back of Coco’s Volvo, fogging up the windows. That all their hard work would be trashed if I were to get knocked up. I get it. Statistically, I know I was the candidate for teenage pregnancy: poor, first-generation, working class, brown, Catholic in a red state. Also, being first-generation, I have to learn everything the hard way, trial-by-fire. Clearly, sex was one lesson I couldn’t learn hands on. I could understand the anger but I also was accused of something I didn’t do, much less even knew the mechanics of it.

In reality, I was book-loving dork who read the dictionary and newspaper for fun. I was super shy and only had a handful of friends. I wore wide legged jeans and baggy shirts to hide my lumpy growing body. I made my own jewelry and begged my tired parents to take me to the library every weekend. Pro-Hoe Yeiry wouldn’t even make an appearance until after college!

From that tirade, my mother instilled the fear of pregnancy without explaining sex to me. I was left with so many questions.

  • Is my virginity the only significant part of my identity?
  • Why does my hymen determine the integrity and honor of my family?
  • Does wanting to learn and explore my body make me a Puta?
  • Why is being a puta or santa my only options to exist in the world?

There was no Google God to pray to about this issue. All I had was a Catholicism rigidness and a very literal encyclopedia that had medical illustrations under the term “anatomy”. I’m a 16 year old living in Texas, with an abstinence-only education that barely even mentioned a maxi pad. I’m a stranger in my lumpy soft body. I don’t even know the texture of my hair. I have no idea where a tampon goes. But only married women are allowed to wear tampons, right? All I know is that I’m totally alone in this and I’m “supposed” to know things that no one had explained to me.

I internalized and hardened with the sex-loathing lava that exploded all over me. How was I to get pregnant if I didn’t even know what pieces went together? How was I to make sense of things when extreme hypotheticals were thrown at me? It was not a conversation. I had no choice but to obey some archaic belief where my hymen ties the family together. Let’s not break any of it.

Coco broke up with me over the phone during Christmas. He didn’t give a specific reason and just said it was best if we didn’t see each other. I agreed only because I was so confused that he didn’t like me anymore. I never shared with him the shit I got because he was white and he wouldn’t understand. Plus, there is only so much emotional intimacy a 16 year old can hold.

“It took 15 years after that explosion to finally make peace with my body.”

It took 15 years after that explosion to finally make peace with my body. There was not one road but a series of steps and tumbles that led to my sexual education. I learned more about myself through every relationship and one-night-stands. I healed from the emotional abuse I endured in my 20’s. I learned the cavernous chambers of sexual identity and pleasure. Finally, hands-on learning I can understand!

Unlearning is a real team effort. My older sister’s sex-positive attitude was a light at the end of the cervix. Years of therapy has given me the voice to speak up. A community of feminist peers with their support and communal learning, provided the space to learn and exchange. I have a great gyno who answers all the questions I have. I read books, pamphlets, brochures. I even got the courage to grab fistfuls of free NYC condoms. Anything to further my knowledge. I experimented and learned and laughed, all while shedding my internalized sex-shame one clothing layer at a time.

Unlearning is a work in progress. I still get shy about the topic with my Mom, although now she’s trying to be more open about it since I’m obviously an adult. I’m learning more about my body over time and how to listen to it. How to respond to it and to know what feels good or not. Owning my pleasure meant listening to my body. To be patient with my body. To be accepting of the wisdom it’s telling me; not to reject it because of some other external factor (i.e.: this partner won’t like me if I say this or this is what I’m “supposed” to do).

I am also assertive and vocal of continuous consent, very important for all parties involved. I no longer carry the extra weight of worrying what others will think or say just because I am living my truth. I own every inch of my body and it’s a daily affirmation I make to keep this peace. This body is not for a future spouse, or for childrearing or a trophy for someone’s stupid honor: it’s all my own, no one else’s. Managing my anxiety has also provided me the mental clarity to be present. To enjoy the moment and frankly, to breathe. I am able to be present in the moment, be aware of myself and to accept peace in myself.

No one tells you this about sex: it’s okay to take your time. In this hypersexed/youth-obsessed culture, sex can be weird. Sex can be complicated. The most important part about this sexual education is you: your comfort, your consent, your pleasure, your health, your safety. I don’t have the answers but I’m still learning to not feel any shame or guilt for any piece of me. Solo cuidate / take care of yourself in the process (condoms, birth control, abstinence, whatever works for you). Light up all the candles to the Google Gods and do research to learn.

Sexual education does not mean a direct pregnancy/life-sentence.

It’s a fucking conversation.

Cura(Collected) - 12/3/2017

Cura(Collected) at Knockdown Center

Cura(Collected) at Knockdown Center

The Cura(Collected) was a wonderful collection where my piece was alongside other amazing Salvadoran artists in a vessel. Final performances for the series were on December 3, 2017. The exhibition officially closes on December 17, 2017.

About The Show: Knockdown Center is pleased to present the third rendition of Cura(Collected), an exhibition series that centers artists who curate. This edition features a collaborative project by Anjuli Rathod, Eduardo Restrepo Castaño, Oscar Moises Diaz with an accompanying essay by manuel arturo abreu. All three are creators whose involvement in the artistic community has had a generative impact on their local art scenes, and for this occasion each artist has brought in collaborators and community for a series of ongoing, cumulative performances and actions that will take place within an architectural structure inside of the gallery each week.

A collaboration by Anjuli Rathod, Eduardo Restrepo Castaño, Oscar Moises Diaz and accompanying text by manuel arturo abreu.

Featuring contributions by Justin Cabrillos, Mariana Herrera Castaño, Nancy Chavarria, Mauricio Esquivel, Yeiry Guevara, Julia Pimes Mata, Karina Puente, Sayre Quevedo, Crack Rodriguez, Carmelle Safdie, Matthew Shalzi, Lily Jue Sheng, Dyeemah Simmons, Lucy Tomasino, and Veronica Vides. Organized by Sessa Englund

More info here:
Knockdown Center Website Event
Facebook Event

Thank you to Moises for inviting me to be part of the show. Shoutout to all the Salvi artists who shine brightly with their work. Event images are below.

WAKE Presents: Zines y Más - 11/26/2017

My First TX Zine Fest!!

My First TX Zine Fest!!

The hu$tle does not stop, especially in H-Town. Super fun to have participated in Zines y Más presented by WAKE Zine on Sunday, November 26, 2017 at the Galveston Arts Center.

About The Fest: WAKE, the Galveston-based collective behind the music and arts publication Wake the Zine and host of music events in Galveston, presents Zines y Más. The event will feature local zine makers and more in the style of a small pop-up market. This project is made possible with support from The Idea Fund. The Idea Fund is a re-granting program administered by DiverseWorks, Aurora Picture Show, and Project Row Houses and funded by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.

PARTICIPANTS ~
Artificial Head Records
Chris Kill Co.
Galveston Synergist Project
Hosj Ore
Miss Champagne
Noth Zine
Poison Moon Records
RYD Works
Super Hit Press
Wallflower Records
Yeiry Guevara
Zine Fest Houston

More info here:
Wake the Zine Website Event
Facebook Event

Special shoutout for my parents for being super sweet and supportive! Y'all the best. Los quiero tanto <3

Got a Girl Crush Zine Fest - 11/19/2017

Sunday, November 19 - Zine Fest in Brooklyn

Sunday, November 19 - Zine Fest in Brooklyn

I was pumped to vend at the 2nd Annual Print and Zine Fest by Got a Girl Crush at New Women Space on Sunday, Nov 19, 2017. 

About The Fest:
Featuring an exciting, emerging line-up of women/trans/gender non-conforming-led publications, artists and merch:

Got a Girl Crush Website Event
Facebook Event

The event was incredibly successful. Excellent vendors, clear communication and lots of engaging people who visited. Thank you all who stopped by and chatted!

 

No Dice - 11/17/2017

nodice

Rejection Funhouse

Organized by Arti Gollapudi

My first art show in November! Thanks Arti Gollapudi for organizing this event. I displayed a mixed media piece (first one I've made for public consumption!). I originally made the piece when I was 16 years old. I cleaned it up and added minimal 21st century touches. Magazine cutouts and teen angst, meet Photoshop and adult anxiety. Fun in one frame!

About The Show:
~* A weekend long interactive gallery exploring desire, fear, repudiation, & acceptance *~
The gallery's theme is rejection- whether that me the process of applying yourself, the feeling of want/desire, the act of rejection, the coping, etc. All slabbed together by Arti Gollapudi

Splash That Event Page

Facebook Event Here

Relive the moment in the images below.

New Latin Wave - 10/22/2017

Took place on October 22, 2017

Took place on October 22, 2017

What a thrill to be part of New Latin Wave 2017 at Brooklyn Bazaar! Lots of fantastic programming in one day. I participated in the Book and Zine Fair of NLW, curated by the wonderful Steph Orentas of La Liga Zine.

Also, I presented the launch of my second zine titled Vos Cipota that same day. Lots of feels. Photos of the launch are below.

What is New Latin Wave: Dedicated to celebrating the most current and compelling voices in Latinx art, music, literature and film, New Latin Wave is more than a cultural festival; it’s a multidisciplinary symposium that seeks to open conversations about Latinx and Latin American contributions and identity in the United States by creating a platform for performers, writers and artists.

Read more about the event on:

Many thanks to Sokio and Amanda for organizing everything, Steph of La Liga Zine for curating the Book & Zine Fair and her wonderful support, Mayra for debuting Just Plush Play and all the amazing attendees who supported latinx arts in NYC. Pics below!

INK FIBER IMAGE - 10/14/2017

Antidote-VT.jpg

INK FIBER IMAGE

Organized by Antidote Books in Putney, RVT

I finally shared a stage with my dear friend Ruth Antoinette Rodriguez! We met in our hometown of Houston, TX when we were bouncing around this thing called life. Nearly a decade later, we shared our writing in Antidote Bookstore, which she owns with her husband in Putney, Vermont.  

About the show:
INK, FIBER & IMAGE: An Evening of Exploring Latinx Idenity Through the Arts with readings by RUTH ANTOINETTE RODRIGUEZ & YEIRY GUEVARA

YEIRY GUEVARA (NYC) is a writer, translator and fiber artist whose work has appeared in Chiflad@, La Liga, and St. Sucia. Yeiry is the author of THE SAVIOR, a Spanish-and-English zine that explores family and memory in El Salvador through the lens of photography. Yeiry lives in New York City where she's recognized for bringing contemporary Latinx creativity into focus. www.yeiry.com

RUTH ANTOINETTE RODRIGUEZ (HTX) is a poet who works with typewritten words, ink images and fiber. A recipient of fellowships from the Fine Arts Work Center, the Community of Writers at Squaw Valley and Factory Hollow Press, Rodriguez holds a BA in English from the University of Houston. Originally from Houston, TX, Rodriguez lives in Vermont where she runs Antidote Books, an independent book store dedicated to poetry, curious minds, and social justice awareness.

Our reading was featured in the Community Events page for the Brattleboro Literary Festival. Also, I'm very proud to announce that copies of my zine are available for purchase at Antidote Books!  Thanks for everything Ruth & Jeremy! Thank you Vermont for a lovely autumn evening. 

Dia de la Raza - 10/12/2017

Dia de la Raza

Dia De La Raza

Organized by La Liga and Ana Castillo

On October 12th 2017, I had the joy to read with many great voices including chingona author Ana Castillo in a Welcome to NYC style party at Starr Bar. 

About the show:
En el Día de la Raza, La Liga Zine is hosting a gathering to welcome Chicana novelist-poet Ana Castillo to her new home in New York! On this day, Ana Castillo was crowned a curandera in Mexico by a great Tlaxcaltec medicine man 20 years ago.

Featuring:

  • Nancy Mercado
  • Ayendy Bonifacio
  • Sergio Troncoso
  • Ana Castillo
  • Stephanie Orentas
  • Mari Santa Cruz
  • Yeiry Guevara
  • Sayuri Gomez

Many thanks to everyone who came out and welcomed Ana with open arms. A few snaps of the event are below.

BRN GRL SPK - 10/9/2017

BRN GRL SPK

This Is My Home (Too)

Organized by BRN GRL SPK

On Indigenous People's Day, I had the honor to show my work at the inaugural art show organized by BRN GRL SPK. BRN GRL SPK is a wonderful platform built by women of color, for women of color. Their mission: "a creative arts collective that focuses on creating spaces where women and femmes of color can speak their minds and affect change. We aim to empower and support BRN GRLs by building community, organizing events, and fundraising for progress."

Featured Artists:

About the Show:
Where is home? And what does it look like for immigrants, indigenous groups, and people of color? BRN GRL SPK presents This Is My Home (Too), an exhibit by women and femme artists of color. Their work examines our country’s complicated history with colonialism, slavery, and immigration -- asking what and where is home, who has historically had access to one, and how does that shape one’s identity today?

The collection is displayed in Caza Mezcal's gallery from October 9 - 28th.
Proceeds from the opening night will benefit Families For Freedom, a New York based human rights organization by and for families facing and fighting deportation.

Thanks to our sponsors:  BAX | Brooklyn Arts Exchange, Tanteo Tequila, Girl Power Supply, FREEda Women NYC, and Meta Balance.

Many thanks to all who attended and packed the Gallery at Casa Mezcal with so many funds going to Families for Freedom. A thousand thank you's to the wonderful women of BRN GRL SPK: Ugonna, Ally, Mariah and Ranjani. Immense gratitude to my friends who came to support my first NYC art show! Y'all are the best.

Betty Zine Fest - 10/7/2017

betty_zine_fest_17_pins_0002_PIN_3_.jpg

Betty Zine Fest

Organized by The Bettys

On October 7th, I had the joyful opportunity to vend at The Bettys' 2nd Annual Betty Zine Fest 2017. The day saw an amazing turnout with over 75 vendors. All organized by:

Major thanks to Aurora and The Bettys for putting together an incredible event. Huge shoutout to my sister Mayra Guevara who was pillar of complete support this day, and every day. Much love sis! Thank you to all who attended and supported NJ's only zine festival!

Here is the local news in Newark covering the festival. I'm laughing in the background at 0:33.

 

Nosotras Zine Fiesta - 9/15/2017

Mujeristas Fiesta

Nosotras Zine Fiesta

Organized by Mujeristas Collective 

On September 15th 2017, I participated in my first zine festival! Thank you so much Mujeristas Collective for organizing Nosotras Zine Fiesta at June Bar. The idea behind the event as expressed by Mujeristas Collective: "Nosotras is meant to highlight the mujeres/muxeres zine makers and artists that exist and uphold this community." 

The fiesta created a powerful connection between the wonderful vendors and supportive audience. Shoutout to the amazing vendors at Nosotras Zine Fiesta:

Performance by STEFA & DJ Cisnegros
Photobooth all night by The Unapologetically Brown Series

Thank you everyone who attended!  Major thanks to lovely people who purchased my Mami made items. Mom sends her deepest gratitude and appreciation! She was amazed by all the support shown. With the earnings made, she is be able to continue making more items for our shop. So thank you for encouraging my mom and her craft.

Also thanks to i-D for the wonderful feature about the show.  I'm on the list alongside 4 other fellow artists in the article titled: 5 Radical Zines By Latina/x Women

Home And Away Show - 8/25/2017

HomeAndAwayShow

Coming Home

12 NYC & HTX Based Artists Come Together in Houston, TX

On August 25th 2017, I had the immense joy to be part of "Home and Away" Show at the Gallery of Hardy & Nance Studios in Houston, TX. It was the first time I showed my art in public! Despite the imminent threat of Hurricane Harvey, the collaborative work of 12 emerging artists shone through the darkest storm clouds. A variety of mediums such as photography, painting, embroidery, video, jewelry were on display. All were representations of the artist's personal exploration of home and complexity of that relationship. Click here for the official press release. Check out the event pics and video below!

Most profound THANK YOU to Suzy Villarruel for having the vision and execution to bring the show to life. She believed in our craft, our potential, inspired each one of us and made it all happen. Te quiero mucho, amiga!

Mucho love to all the artists who contributed their immense talents and support:

Forever grateful for the support from our wonderful sponsors: Oriana V. Garcia, Claudia Vasquez, Buffalo Bayou Brewing, Deep Eddy Vodka, Red Bull, and Topo Chico. 

Additional thank you to my parents and family for being profoundly supportive and sweet;  Maria Inez for her creative vision and kind heart. Thank you everyone who attended!

"The Savior" Reactions

Guevara, Yeiry - Savior Happy

Reader Reviews

Collection of reader responses to the zine titled "The Savior".

In the summer of 2017, I published my first zine titled "The Savior" and quietly released it to the world. I am now very proud to announce that "The Savior" has shipped to over 100 copies in 6 countries. Here is a collection of Twitter reactions from the wonderful readers who shared their experience with it. Thank you for all the support, especially #CentralAmericanTwitter. To learn about the zine's origin story and my creative work, listen to my interview with Sobremesa Podcast. 

Visit to Perquín

Museo De La Revolucion

Photo Gallery of the Museum of the Revolution

On my recent visit to El Salvador, I took a day trip to Perquín, Morazán on Saturday, July 1, 2017 to visit the Museo de la Revolución.

Perquín is located in the northeast section of the country. It was a town that suffered heavy casualties during the war and almost disappeared from the earth entirely. Knowing conceptually about the war did not prepare me to live into the space where the heavy fighting occurred.

Our tour guide was a former child soldier whose candid anecdotes brought life to each item in the museum collection.

There were so many pictures of young people. In fact, a number of the photographed individuals are alive to this day. They are teachers, members of legislation, government agents, politicians, lawyers, doctors, survivors. However, the war claimed over 75,000 lives in this tiny country, created a generation on the run and a diaspora of Salvadorans removed  from their ancestral land. 

Another striking series of images were the protest posters created during the war. The designers varied but the impact was profound. 

This was my history that was never included in the Texas textbooks growing up. It was until I was in college I read a paragraph about El Salvador in a book. This trip provided a glimpse into the massacres that changed the course of history, my history.  Although the country is celebrating 25 years since the peace accords were signed, wounds this deep are felt on a seismic level. 

Lastly, just a series of images and a video from the Museum. There was a choir practicing during the filming of  video that made for a serendipitous soundtrack.

All photography by Yeiry Guevara