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Large brain floats over the border

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  • Large brain floats over the border

    Posted by MikeyD on September 17, 2022 at 6:33 am

    Mexican artist flies a giant balloon that gives his take on migration
    BY ALEXANDRA MENDOZA

    SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE

    TIJUANA – Neither rain nor wind Friday prevented a red helium brain from floating at the border fence that divides San Diego and Tijuana.

    It was part of an art installation called “Aforo Nómada,” or “Nomadic Gathering,” by multidisciplinary artist Alejandro Rocha.

    “It is an allegory to human migration,” said Rocha, a Mexico City native. “This means that the first thing that flies or travels across cultural and geographical borders is the mind.”

    With this artwork, Rocha, 36, looks to visit the main borders of Mexico and elsewhere. The piece was first exhibited in 2015 at the International Festival of Lights (Filux) in Mexico City. From there, it has toured different cities, including a presentation at the Burning Man art festival in Nevada last August.

    The next stop will be the southern border of Mexico before the end of the year, Rocha said.

    The installation consists of a 13 -foot-by-8-foot red helium balloon with a light inside. The color was chosen because it symbolizes “the mind without limits, free to think, move and act,” the artist explained.

    Rough weather, due to the path of Tropical Storm Kay, almost prevented flight Friday afternoon.

    But as soon as the weather subsided for a moment, Rocha, accompanied by a group of 10 collaborators, quickly lifted his piece from the beach in Tijuana.

    “It was very complex,” said Rocha, who added that the wind was moving the art more in the direction of the United States. “We said, ‘We have to do it; we’re already here.’”

    As they did so, people nearby gathered to take pictures, including members of the Mexican army who were guarding the area, Rocha said.

    The exhibition of the piece was intended to be accompanied by the screening of a documentary on migration, which in the end could not take place due to the weather.

    Rocha’s work is the most recent artistic expression on the border fence between Playas de Tijuana and Imperial Beach.

    The fence on the Mexican side is filled with the work of different artists who have adopted the space to send messages of solidarity to migrant communities.

    “We, the artists, have been joining in, and it has become a kind of museum,” Rocha said. “From so many stories happening right on this little piece of the border (…) we get to see the different versions and visions of the artists.”

    bajatraveler replied 1 year, 6 months ago 3 Members · 2 Replies
  • 2 Replies
  • enchirito

    Member
    September 20, 2022 at 5:12 pm

    Seems to me like lots of gringos leave there brains at the border when heading south. 😜

    • bajatraveler

      Member
      September 21, 2022 at 7:43 am

      Ha ha, no kidding.

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