Lost — Then Found — Along The Border, Objects Become Art
Depictions of the U.S.-Mexico border often show a fence, and desolation on either side.
But the nearly 2,000-mile stretch of land is far from empty — among other things, it holds lost possessions.
Photographer Richard Misrach spent the last five years documenting everything he came across along the border. During his expedition, he says, it was common to find items left in the middle of nowhere by migrants passing through.
"It could be backpacks, and water bottles, tennis shoes, things like that. Each one of those objects has this incredible story, and it's a tragedy. Every single one of them is a tragedy," Richard Misrach tells guest host Tess Vigeland. "Tennis shoes of a 4-year-old, two of them, just sitting there without the child in them. What does that mean?"
Joining Misrach in the interview is composer Guillermo Galindo. After Misrach's journey, he asked Galindo to build instruments out of those found objects. The music that Galindo created sounds just like the desolate landscapes captured in Misrach's stunning photographs.
Misrach and Galindo's work will go on exhibit at the San Jose Museum of Art in the spring of 2016. Click the audio link above to hear what some of the instruments sound like; you can see more photographs at California Sunday Magazine.
Interview Highlights
On one of Galindo's instruments, an effigy, and the desert discoveries it was based on
Galindo: It's dressed with the clothing from the immigrants. It contains strings in the chest and in the arms that stretch really long so it pulls really low tones. And inside the skeleton of it is hollow wood.
Misrach: In 2009, when I found [the original effigies], they were just maybe 15-20 of them along the border in remote desert canyons, things like that. I didn't know whether this was an art project by somebody or a warning to immigrants coming over the mountain passes or perhaps even protests against the border patrol. Part of what I found so amazing about them is that they were so enigmatic and mysterious.
On another creation, a "zapatello" crank instrument
Galindo: It's based on a Leonardo da Vinci mechanical device named the martello, which is a mechanized hammer, basically. The whole thing is a crank machine and it has a donkey jaw, a horn that acts as a stopper of these gears, that are made of the shape of the border patrol targets. And these activate both a shoe and glove. As you crank it, they play the drum, which is made of one of these truck tires that Richard found and it's covered with rawhide.
On what will become of Galindo's instruments
Misrach: We figure [the exhibit is] going to probably travel for three years to museums around the country and hopefully to Mexico City. I imagine they'll end up in institutions to be preserved and to continue to be thought about. But we don't know. What do you think, Guillermo?
Galindo: They have to be kept, they're very important. This is not trash and this is not a recycling project. These are sacred objects.
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Transcript
TESS VIGELAND, HOST:
Our collective image of the U.S.-Mexico border likely consists of a fence and desolation on either side of it. But that nearly 2000 mile stretch of land also holds a surprising amount of ephemera, and photographer Richard Misrach spent the last five years documenting it.
After the journey, he asked composer Guillermo Galindo to build instruments out of those objects and to create music from them. It sounds just like the desolate landscapes captured in his stunning photographs. I asked Misrach what sorts of things he comes across along the border.
RICHARD MISRACH: Backpacks, and water bottles, tennis shoes, things like that. Each one of those objects has this incredible story, and it's a tragedy. Every single one of them is a tragedy. I mean, tennis shoes of a 4-year-old, two of them, just sitting there without the child in them. What does that mean? Why it's just the shoes there? I get those and bring them back to Gillermo so he can incorporate them into his instruments.
VIGELAND: Right. Well, Guillermo, tell us about some of these instruments that you designed?
GUILLERMO GALINDO: Lately, I've been using objects from the border patrol or parts of the wall.
VIGELAND: Parts of the actual border fence?
GALINDO: Yeah.
VIGELAND: What did you turn that into?
GALINDO: Well, there's one that - it's a piece of iron. I made this metallic harp. There's also a shell pinata that is made out of empty shells of the rifles of the border patrol. And it's in the shape of a pinata.
VIGELAND: Well, you call one of these instruments an effigy, and it really does resemble a person or at the very least a scarecrow. Tell us about the design of that and what it's made from.
GALINDO: It's a dress with clothing from the immigrants. It contains strings in the chest and in the arms. They stretch really long so it plays really low tones, and inside a skeleton of it is hollow wood.
VIGELAND: All right, let's hear what the effigy sounds like.
(SOUNDBITE OF EFFIGY INSTRUMENT)
VIGELAND: Richard, do you find these effigies as they are, or is that something that you constructed for the photograph.
MISRACH: No, no, everything that I photograph I find in the landscape.
VIGELAND: So what would have been the purpose of those?
MISRACH: That's a good question. In 2009, when I found them, there were just maybe 15 to 20 of them along the border in remote desert canyons, things like that. And I didn't know whether this was an art project by somebody or a warning to immigrants coming over the mountain passes or perhaps even a, you know, protest against the border patrol. Part of what I found so amazing about them is that they were so enigmatic and mysterious.
VIGELAND: Then there's also the crank drum. And this is quite the instrument - a shoe, a glove - cranked down to hit a drum made of a tire and rawhide skin. Guillermo, how did you design that?
GALINDO: Well, It's based on a Leonardo da Vinci mechanical device named the martello. The whole thing is a crank machine and it has a donkey jaw, a horn that act as stoppers of these gears that are made of the shape of the border patrol targets. And this activates both a shoe and a glove. As you crank it, they play the drum.
(SOUNDBITE OF ZAPATELLO INSTRUMENT)
VIGELAND: Now, the San Jose Museum of Art will be exhibiting your photographs along with Guillermo's music in 2016, and then it's going on national tour. What happens to all these objects after that end?
MISRACH: We figure it's going to probably travel for three years. And after that, I imagine they'll end up in institutions to be preserved and to continue to be thought about. But we don't know. What do you think, Guillermo?
GALINDO: They have to be kept. They're very important. This is not trash and this is not a recycling project. You know, this is - these are sacred objects, literally.
VIGELAND: Richard Misrach, Guillermo Galindo, thank you so much for joining us. It's been a pleasure.
MISRACH: Thank you.
GALINDO: Thank you.
VIGELAND: To see Misrach's photos and Galindo's instruments visit our website at NPR.org. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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