Natalia Ruiz
Trazando Raíces
Trazando Raíces is my journey of self-discovery, tracing the lives of the women in my family whose legacies quietly yet powerfully live on. I was motivated to go on this journey for two reasons: I was curious to find out more about my lineage because I knew little about my ancestors, especially the women. Secondly, I’ve always felt a sadness in my chest that feels as though it doesn’t belong to me. I wanted to find answers to this and looked into family bonds and how things such as trauma can be passed from one generation to the next. Through research, I uncovered similarities in the experiences of the women in my family which to me felt like more than coincidences. For example, my great-great-grandmother lived as an exile in San Antonio, Texas. Many years later, my mother also moved to this city, while I eventually left for another country. In this way, we all share the experience of leaving our homeland. Another similarity: my great-great-grandmother was a bookbinder, and my mother later studied bookbinding. I also uncovered the history of my great-grandaunt who the family had erased from memory because she chose her own way through life instead of walking the path set out for her by traditional family values and society’s expectations.
Many of my family members are poets, painters, and creatives. This includes me, and so through this research I began to see myself more and more in the stories of the women who came before me. Experiences of dislocation, exile, adaptation, and freedom are in our blood. I came to recognize in myself the same struggles against gendered expectations, the same strength to forge new paths despite vulnerability, and the same resilience that comes from truly making something of oneself. The photos I took were the final part of this research journey – a way to express the family stories using my own creative autonomy as a photographer. I wrote the companion poem to give voice to these stories and narrate the feelings and experiences I had uncovering them. Inspired by the bookbinding expertise in my family, I chose to build an accordion book and used embroidery to weave elements of my Mexican heritage into it.
Through photography, poetry, and embroidery, Trazando Raíces becomes an act of celebration and remembrance, giving voice to what has been forgotten, honoring the strength that emerges from vulnerability, and celebrating the legacy of the women who came before me. Poem: Don’t be fooled by the solemn silence, or the sorrow that fills the air. In this garden of tears, dear soul, you will prevail. Listen closely, child, you come from Soldaderas, who did not bend to fear’s will. They met their destiny with grace, prepared with a soft heart for the battlefield. Though forced to leave their land, they built nests within their souls, So tender to those they held, yet enduring the toughest storm. Writers, poets, and painters, their lives were filled with art. So don’t question if you are capable of such a life; it runs in your blood. This garden deemed decadent and bare, is fertile soil laid by them with care. Trim the weeds, dance barefoot in the earth, and soon you’ll see the abundance it bears. Nurture and cultivate this sacred ground, strengthen the foundations for the ones to come.
Natalia Ruiz
Trazando Raíces
Trazando Raíces is my journey of self-discovery, tracing the lives of the women in my family whose legacies quietly yet powerfully live on. I was motivated to go on this journey for two reasons: I was curious to find out more about my lineage because I knew little about my ancestors, especially the women. Secondly, I’ve always felt a sadness in my chest that feels as though it doesn’t belong to me. I wanted to find answers to this and looked into family bonds and how things such as trauma can be passed from one generation to the next. Through research, I uncovered similarities in the experiences of the women in my family which to me felt like more than coincidences. For example, my great-great-grandmother lived as an exile in San Antonio, Texas. Many years later, my mother also moved to this city, while I eventually left for another country. In this way, we all share the experience of leaving our homeland. Another similarity: my great-great-grandmother was a bookbinder, and my mother later studied bookbinding. I also uncovered the history of my great-grandaunt who the family had erased from memory because she chose her own way through life instead of walking the path set out for her by traditional family values and society’s expectations.
Many of my family members are poets, painters, and creatives. This includes me, and so through this research I began to see myself more and more in the stories of the women who came before me. Experiences of dislocation, exile, adaptation, and freedom are in our blood. I came to recognize in myself the same struggles against gendered expectations, the same strength to forge new paths despite vulnerability, and the same resilience that comes from truly making something of oneself. The photos I took were the final part of this research journey – a way to express the family stories using my own creative autonomy as a photographer. I wrote the companion poem to give voice to these stories and narrate the feelings and experiences I had uncovering them. Inspired by the bookbinding expertise in my family, I chose to build an accordion book and used embroidery to weave elements of my Mexican heritage into it.
Through photography, poetry, and embroidery, Trazando Raíces becomes an act of celebration and remembrance, giving voice to what has been forgotten, honoring the strength that emerges from vulnerability, and celebrating the legacy of the women who came before me. Poem: Don’t be fooled by the solemn silence, or the sorrow that fills the air. In this garden of tears, dear soul, you will prevail. Listen closely, child, you come from Soldaderas, who did not bend to fear’s will. They met their destiny with grace, prepared with a soft heart for the battlefield. Though forced to leave their land, they built nests within their souls, So tender to those they held, yet enduring the toughest storm. Writers, poets, and painters, their lives were filled with art. So don’t question if you are capable of such a life; it runs in your blood. This garden deemed decadent and bare, is fertile soil laid by them with care. Trim the weeds, dance barefoot in the earth, and soon you’ll see the abundance it bears. Nurture and cultivate this sacred ground, strengthen the foundations for the ones to come.
BLURRING THE LINES
FOSTERING TALENT AND NETWORKING IN VISUAL CULTURE
Program Leader
Partners
BLURRING THE LINES
FOSTERING TALENT AND NETWORKING IN VISUAL CULTURE
Program Leader
Partners