Journey to the Mictlán

Even though 2020 brought a lot of uncertainty, the Journey to the Mictlán was carried out with all the complexity of what it means to create projects focused on community art in times of a health emergency. During the process, 40 people participated, including members of the board of directors, photographers, videographers, volunteers, and close friends. This edition was achieved thanks to the alliances we formed with volunteer teams such as Alumbra, who taught lighting workshops and collaborated in the creation of allegorical cars, and Recicla Percusión, who, as in other years, helped us in the composition and sound presentation; as well as the Xoloplastics team and other young people from the community, who were fundamental participants. We had the participation of 14 girls, boys, and young people. In other words, we work with 3% of the population compared to other years. Given the circumstances, safety and care protocols were prioritized for the well-being of the participants and the community.
 

The process and the result were very different from other years. The Journey to the Mictlán 2020 was a very moving project and of a lot of dedication on the part of all the people who joined. We created three allegorical cars that we decorated with light and with the already mythical puppets, as well as five musical compositions. We visit and offer our art on six altars for the dead; chosen in a significant way for being close relatives of the young people who participated. In the end, after a lot of imagination and with a minimal budget, we managed to build a stronger community with a project that we love so much. It was very satisfying to find a way for the pandemic to offer us the opportunity to be more creative and form a more cohesive community.