This work emerged from a transformative journey: my first time in Mexico, my first steps into the jungle, and a powerful encounter with the ruins of Río Bec. Though I had never been there before, it felt like a return to something deeply familiar—a homecoming to a place where I somehow belonged. It marked my first return to Latin America in ten years, since migrating from my home country, and carried the emotional weight of reconnection.
Symbolism and meaning behind the piece:
The Illuminated Doorway
A portal to what is lost, hidden, and remembered. It evokes rebirth, knowledge, and timeless presence, offering an open invitation to step beyond.
Light and Shadow
A contrast between memory and dream, past and present. The glow speaks of warmth and discovery, while the shadows reflect mystery and silence.
Mayan Influence
Embedded in the piece are references to Mayan cosmology: the sacred number three, the balam (jaguar) as protector, the moon, and symbolic drawings inspired by children from the Xbonil community and the experiences of the retreat.
Blending a painterly, surreal aesthetic with cinematic scale, I aimed to create an immersive world that invites the viewer to become both explorer and witness. The composition reflects the duality of the journey—vulnerability and strength, reality and myth, loss and renewal.
The figure is not just a traveler. It is a projection of immersion and transformation, crossing a threshold into something larger than oneself.
This piece honors cultural heritage and our emotional connection to the past. It is an invitation to reflect, to find personal meaning in forgotten places, and to recognize that some places don’t merely exist in time—they live within us.
