Citlali Fabián (Mexico): Ben’n Yalhalhj / Soy de Yalálag / I’m from Yalalag
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There is always a need to feel that you belong to somewhere or a desire to feel that you are part of something bigger than your self. (At least I always had that feeling, because that is the way that my parents taught me to see the world.) I’m Citlali, a yalaltec woman born and raised outside Yalalag but always in touch with my zapotec culture.
Since I began photographing I have documented yalaltec culture. I’ve collected vernacular photos of my family in an attempt to connect and better understand our identity and worldview. I’m trying to weave a net in order to talk about my ancestral zapotec history – from our family perspective. I truly think there is no lineal story, but it is really important to be able to see all angles to appreciate different points of view. In order to appreciate cultures from a meaningful place, especially native cultures, we need to have the chance to talk about ourselves and been seen from our own human stories.
The present selection of images are part of my project called Ben’n Yalhalhj which means from Zapotec Language “I’m from Yalalag”. It is a universe of images collected and sometimes intervened over the last 8 years.