Map of shared memories of CDMX
February 2022 - September 2022

Work done during the artistic residence I did in the multidisciplinary art space Konvent (Cal Rosal - Barcelona).

The space that surrounds us, shapes the relationship we have with ourselves and with our environment. The streets you walk through every day; that restaurant where you had your first date; the corner where you desperately cried after a robbery, become the makeshift stages of your life’s play. If we multiply this palimpsest of memories by all the people who inhabit the city, we will realize that each corner of the metropolis accumulates thousands of scenes about which we will never know anything.

Map of shared memories is a participatory work, where the experiences of the people who transit the city become the central pillar of it.


Through social networks, I compiled a series of short texts in which different people anonymously explained experiences they had on the streets of CDMX. This way, Fuente de los Coyotes becomes the place where “I spent time with my deceased grandmother eating elotes” or Ciudad Universitaria, the place where “I saw a lunar eclipse, experienced my first earthquake and met the man who is now my husband”.

Choosing the texts at random, I traced a journey through the memories of dozens of strangers, turning each of these experiences into a link within this improvised itinerary through the streets of the city. The distance between the public space and the intimacy of our memory is shortened until the final result is reached: a map of shared memories. A plane of experiences between strangers.


This is a multidisciplinary work that encompasses various formats and is constantly evolving.

For now, Map of shared memories has been carried out in Madrid, Barcelona y CDMX.


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USED MEMORIES:

- I was born on May 11, 1980 in the general hospital of Mexico City, the day of a deluge. Since then it always rains on my birthday. wherever you are.

- My special memory of CDMX is at Hospital Shriners for kids [...] during the last years of my residency in the medical specialty of Traumatology and Orthopedics, I had the opportunity to do a clinical rotation at said hospital, in which I fell in love with the city, the hospital and, above all, with pediatric orthopedics, so much so that one year later I submitted my application as a candidate for the highly specialized course that is taught at the hospital, thanks to the universe and after a thousand interviews and paperwork I was accepted. I moved to CDMX for a year and did the postgraduate degree of my dreams.

- I have many memories of the pyramid at el Parque de San Pedro de los Pinos, because it is where I grew up playing with my brother, my cousins and friends from the block.

- At Fuente de los Coyotes at the Jardín Centenario Coyoacán, I spent time with my deceased grandmother eating elotes or drinking coffee, I miss her always very much.

- Once while I was doing my service (I was a photographer for cultural events) I found a 1000 peso bill thrown at the entrance of the MUAC and for a public university student that is quite an event.

- It was at the anthropology museum that I found my calling, deciding to leave CDMX to study art history.

- At the park of Chapultepec I bought a piece of corn and was calmly eating it, when a gigantic and hairy squirrel looked at me and tried to attack me and take it away.

- I was walking down Condesa and a squirrel that had just been electrocuted collapsed and fell on me. The poor thing could not get around the chaos of the city's wiring.

- I was in the Mercado de Sonora where they sell witchcraft items and other magical worldviews. [...]. I listened a bit to what the person next door was asking for, it was something like this: “rose water, animal hair, frogs in formalin and a holy death if you can give it to me, lady?” No one wanted to explain what use they gave to each thing, they will only tell you that it is for “work”. This market is great.

- On September 19, 2017, during the earthquake, I was playing in the Congreso de la Unión.

- On Amsterdam street in Condesa I was helping to collect debris from the earthquake.

- At Ciudad Universitaria, in 2017, I saw a lunar eclipse, I experienced my first earthquake and I met the man who is now my husband.

- At La Raza subway station, a lady grabbed my arm and told me that a man was following me. She stayed with me.

- At el Palacio de Bellas Artes, a lady hugged me and thanked me for talking about feminism with a friend.

- With my girlfriend Rebeca and Fer, my best friend, we were from el Ángel de la Independencia to the plinth of Mexico City, in the March 8, 2020 march. Arriving at the plinth, they displayed their anger for the first time in politically incorrect interventions to the city. We were exhausted but it was beautiful.

- It was near Bellas Artes, I went to my first feminist march and I met those who are now some of my best friends and sisters.

- At el mirador del Castillo de Chapultepec, that beautiful one that overlooks to Reforma, I fell in love talking about art and feminism with a girl, the first one who made me understand that sexuality is not black and white and that you should not put labels on love.

- At la Fuente de los Coyotes en Coyoacán I told my cousin that I had left my boyfriend and that I was very happy. (I clarify: I left my boyfriend for a woman and I’m very happy since that day.)

- At San Francisco street, in the colony of Narvarte, where the public bikes are, near the bookstore El Desastre, I kissed a gringo boy with whom I had spent the whole night and the morning passionately. When he left, I ran to the bookstore to connect to the WiFi and call my best friend, obviously to tell her all the details.

- At the Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Tlalpan I met my friend Andrea.

- At Sala Ami Chumacero de la Biblioteca de La Ciudadela, I met a man who said he had met me in another life. Strangely, that afternoon I wrote him a letter, gave it to him and never found him again despite trying to coincide.

- At Alameda del Sur, Miramontes I had my first and last kiss with my ex-partner at the same fountain. Whenever I pass by, it’s difficult not to remember.

- At la taquería Pescaíto de Condesa I had my first date with a Mexican.

- At the Cineteca Nacional a boyfriend I loved very much left me unexpectedly, after 3 years of relationship.

- At UNAM - CU, I met my exchange love dancing salsa.

- Tony and I met when we were 20 years old at university in Spain, during his exchange semester. “Hurricane Romance”, which ended with the semester. 3 years later we decided to meet again and I crossed the ocean. We kissed on the balcony of Frida’s room in the Casa Azul. It was nice.

- I'm from Madrid, married to a Mexican. Our wedding was at the Hacienda de Los Morales with my sister by FaceTime from Australia.

- In a Xochimilco trajinera, one of my best friends proposed to her boyfriend, his closest friends were holding the sign with the proposal “will you marry me?” inside the boat.

- In front of lago de Chapultepec, my current boyfriend proposed to me. 

- I’m Chilean and I lived two and a half years in Mexico City. In the first weeks I met Rebeca at UAM Xochimilco where we were studying a master's degree together. She took me to la casa de cultura Reyes Heroles for a walk one day and that day when I saw her playing with the squirrels, with all the tenderness that characterizes her, I knew I wanted to try to kiss her. I held out for another couple of weeks, and from those days until I left town we were together. She was even recently visiting me in Chile.

- I gave my first kiss on the bridge that changes direction of the metro Camarones.

- At Polanco, CDMX, I felt happiness again after two years of an abusive relationship.

- At las islas de Ciudad Universitaria (UNAM) I met my ex-partner, who mentally abused me for 10 years.

-At Indios Verdes subway station, a man who was about 2 meters tall cornered me and tried to forcefully kiss me when I was on my way to school. There was not a single policeman on sight.

- They gave me an international scholarship to study in CDMX. One day while traveling on the subway, a man killed the security guard with a blow, who denied him entry to the women's car. This happened right into the car next to me.

- Al lado del hostal Selina atracaron a mis amigos a punta de pistola.

- En la Zona Rosa de CDMX, nos paró la policía acusándonos de tirar un porro al suelo (spoiler: no fumamos porros) nos pidieron documentación, nos cachearon, nos descubrieron un pollo de cocaína. Tuvimos que pagar una multa de 350€ al cambio, y al pagarlo nos dijeron literalmente: “guárdate la cocaína en el zapato si no quieres que te la vuelvan a encontrar”. Recuerdo inolvidable.

- En los mercaditos al lado de la Torre Latinoamericana intenté vender un móvil, me lo sacaron y me dijeron que si lo quería recuperar tenía que pagarle 200 pesos. Cuando me puse un poco nervioso y le dije de mala manera que me lo devolviera me dijo: “tranquilo, que aquí no viene la policía” y se giraron todos los del mercado a mirarme. Obviamente pagué y me fui con un miedito encima que maemia.

- Para la revuelta de Octubre de 2019 en Chile, nos reunimos les chilenes viviendo en México el Domingo 20 en el zócalo de la ciudad para protestar por las violaciones a los derechos humanos que se vivían en nuestro país. Fue el primer encuentro de un colectivo hermoso y profundamente comprometido políticamente por la transformación. Desde la distancia con la experiencia que se vivía en Chile, pudimos elaborar nuestra frustración, nuestro descontento, nuestra pena y nuestra rabia. Nos abrazamos, lloramos y protestamos en lo que fue el inicio de una colectividad hermosa.

- Te cuento mi historia en el Museo Nacional de Antropología. Soy española y fui con mi chico y un amigo mexicano que hace años que vive en UK. Al entrar vimos esta estupenda fuente y nos metimos debajo para hacer unas fotos, cuando terminamos y nos disponíamos a entrar en el museo, el guarda de seguridad nos dijo: " se metieron en la fuente, asi que ahora, al secadero ". A mi chico y a mi nos hizo mucha gracia y nos sentamos en un banco al sol, aunque nos sentimos como niños a los que regañan,jajaja.

- En la Colonia Ortiz Tirado vive mi familia querida y visitarlos en 2019 fue genial. En ese viaje descubrí que iba a ser madre y desde entonces mi vida ha cambiado muchísimo. Ellos fueron los primeros en saber que un nuevo miembro de la familia estaba en camino

- En el Hospital Siglo XXI, en el área de pediatría mi hermana estuvo internada. Ahí aprendió a hablar y ahí dejó de caminar, también le salvaron la vida varías veces y ya no va a regresar.

- En la Casa Azul me dieron la gran noticia de que la pierna de mi papá se salvaría. Justo fui a ese viaje para poder despejarme de todo el proceso de hospitales (3 años) que llevábamos.

- En la iglesia de Calzada del Hueso, calle Sauzales mi papá falleció. Fué el domingo 17 de Julio del 2016.