Symbolic Head on Fire

In 1957 a terrible earthquake occurred in Mexico City, besides the destruction, the iconic sculpture the Angel of Independence, (made in 1910 for the celebration of the century of the independence from Spain), fell down and it had to be totally reconstructed. The sculpture has been placed since then in a circular plaza at the most important and symbolic avenue in the city, “Paseo de la Reforma”. This avenue and specially the Angel of Independence are part of the identity and landscape of the city; also celebrations and social protests take place there. Mexico has been always a troubled country and now is not the exception; the war against the drug cartel, corruption in the government and among all this, more than 70,000 people were killed and more of 30,000 are missing in the past years around the country. These are only a few examples of the terrible problems and concerns that the country experiences and despite everything, a new spirit of change and hope is growing amongst us. Therefore, I present a sequence of three photographs of the restored head of the angel; I used an image from the National Photographic Archive, and make a new documentation representing the destruction and despair with fire and ashes in order to bring a new beginning.