Ojo de pájaro
Ojo de pájaro (2017-18) es un proyecto de arquitectura y arte-educación en el que imaginé y diseñé tres instrumentos para mirar Mexicali desde alturas poco comunes.
En este proyecto, me interesaba reflexionar de manera amplia sobre las formas en que vemos la ciudad—sus representaciones y el papel mediador de los objetos a través de los cuales la observamos. La vista de ojo de pájaro, a menudo criticada en la planificación urbana por su perspectiva abstracta y totalizadora, es una a la que rara vez tenemos acceso en Mexicali, una ciudad ubicada en un valle mayormente plano, que apenas ha comenzado a desarrollar edificios altos, los cuales, en cualquier caso, son inaccesibles para la mayoría de las personas.
Creo que ver la ciudad en su conjunto, desde una perspectiva aérea, nos permite ubicarnos en escalas más amplias: en sus complejos entramados, que nos sitúan en el mundo e, incluso, en la vida misma. La experiencia de cambiar de posición y alejarnos del suelo puede generar un sentimiento de humildad ante lo grande y, al mismo tiempo, un doble efecto: extrañamiento y pertenencia.
Quise reflexionar sobre estas experiencias sensoriales, intelectuales y emocionales junto con quienes compartieran conmigo estas vistas elevadas de Mexicali. Para provocar estas experiencias, encontré una serie de referencias muy estimulantes, casi mágicas, en los mecanismos ópticos precinematográficos, que investigué para jugar y desarrollar este proyecto.
De las tres propuestas, logré construir una: la cámara observatorio. En ese momento trabajaba como coordinadora de programas públicos y servicios educativos en el IIC-Museo, y me interesaba cada vez más la mediación: tanto mi rol como mediadora como la mediación que realizan los objetos entre ideas, sentimientos y sensaciones. Encontré un lugar ideal para instalar la cámara en el Paso del Gato, en el Museo Sol del Niño, un almacén industrial patrimonial reutilizado como museo infantil. La cámara estuvo lista a tiempo para el campamento de verano del museo, y durante ese período pude realizar una serie de actividades, juegos y reflexiones con los niños sobre cómo observamos la ciudad, cómo funciona el ojo, tanto mecánica como orgánicamente, y cómo nuestra mirada está impregnada por la cultura.
Este proyecto fue realizado con apoyo del FONCA (Programa Jóvenes creadores 2017-18) y de Edgar Pimienta.
Ojo de pájaro (Bird’s Eye, 2017-18) is
an architecture and art-education project in which I imagined and designed
three instruments to view Mexicali from uncommon heights.
The project explored how we see the city—its representations and the mediating role of the objects through which we observe it. The bird’s-eye view, often criticized in urban planning for its abstract and totalizing perspective, is one rarely available in Mexicali, a city situated in a mostly flat valley that has only recently begun to develop tall buildings, which remain largely inaccessible to most. I sought to make this kind of vision accessible and to create a dialogical process around it.
Seeing the city as a whole, from an aerial perspective, allows us to situate ourselves within broader scales—within its complex entanglements, in the world, and even in life itself. Shifting position, moving away from the ground, can evoke a sense of humility before something vast, while simultaneously producing a dual effect: estrangement and belonging.
I wanted to reflect on these sensory, intellectual, and emotional experiences alongside those who shared these elevated views of Mexicali with me. To evoke such experiences, I drew inspiration from pre-cinematic optical mechanisms, a source of nearly magical references that I explored and played with throughout the project.
Of the three proposals, I managed to build one: the observatory camera. At the time, I was working as coordinator of public programs and educational services at the IIC-Museo, and I was increasingly interested in mediation—both my role as mediator and the way objects mediate between ideas, feelings, and sensations. I found an ideal location for the camera in the Paso del Gato at the Museo Sol del Niño, a heritage industrial warehouse repurposed as a children’s museum. The camera was ready in time for the museum’s summer camp, where I conducted a series of activities, games, and reflections with children on how we observe the city, how vision functions—both mechanically and organically—and how our gaze is shaped by culture.
This project was carried out with support from FONCA (National Fund for Culture and the Arts Young Creators Program 2017-18) and Edgar Pimienta.
The project explored how we see the city—its representations and the mediating role of the objects through which we observe it. The bird’s-eye view, often criticized in urban planning for its abstract and totalizing perspective, is one rarely available in Mexicali, a city situated in a mostly flat valley that has only recently begun to develop tall buildings, which remain largely inaccessible to most. I sought to make this kind of vision accessible and to create a dialogical process around it.
Seeing the city as a whole, from an aerial perspective, allows us to situate ourselves within broader scales—within its complex entanglements, in the world, and even in life itself. Shifting position, moving away from the ground, can evoke a sense of humility before something vast, while simultaneously producing a dual effect: estrangement and belonging.
I wanted to reflect on these sensory, intellectual, and emotional experiences alongside those who shared these elevated views of Mexicali with me. To evoke such experiences, I drew inspiration from pre-cinematic optical mechanisms, a source of nearly magical references that I explored and played with throughout the project.
Of the three proposals, I managed to build one: the observatory camera. At the time, I was working as coordinator of public programs and educational services at the IIC-Museo, and I was increasingly interested in mediation—both my role as mediator and the way objects mediate between ideas, feelings, and sensations. I found an ideal location for the camera in the Paso del Gato at the Museo Sol del Niño, a heritage industrial warehouse repurposed as a children’s museum. The camera was ready in time for the museum’s summer camp, where I conducted a series of activities, games, and reflections with children on how we observe the city, how vision functions—both mechanically and organically—and how our gaze is shaped by culture.
This project was carried out with support from FONCA (National Fund for Culture and the Arts Young Creators Program 2017-18) and Edgar Pimienta.
Esquemas y maqueta de los tres dispositivos.
Diagrams and models of the three devices.
Cámara observatorio. Otorgada en donación al Museo Sol del Niño. Observatory camera. Donated to the Sol del Niño Museum.
Periscopio para ver la ciudad
Periscope to see the city
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Periscope to see the city
Tanque reflejante de Pueblo Nuevo
Pueblo Nuevo Reflective Tank
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