COMALA
(Comala, Colima, Mexico. 2024)
© ViridianaComala is a mythical land born in the shadows of reality and imagination; home to Pedro Páramo who walks between reality and fantasy, between life and death, an emblematic story of magical realism.
"Place of griddles": from the Nahuatl words "Any Comalli" meaning "place" and "griddle" respectively, evoking the time when its inhabitants crafted clay griddles.
As Mexicans and Latinos, we grew up surrounded by stories and legends that shape our worldview and are a cultural heritage that nourishes our blood, where life and death meet and narratives are a reflection of the richness and complexity of our identity. Magic and literary magical realism permeate aspects of our lives, from deeply rooted traditions to everyday experiences that connect us with the divine, the mysterious, and the duality of existence itself.
"Comala" is a photographic series of portraits of the town's inhabitants and surroundings that takes us on an intimate visual journey where its protagonists are testimonies and memories of this land.
Among the daily lives of its artisans, the tradition of generations carving their masks and dances, the salt flats under the scorching sun, a town that disappears every year, and its mountains of salt. A river that flows ceaselessly, the legend of its lagoon, the inheritance of family names, and the memories of those who inhabit this land framed between the Pacific Ocean and the Colima Volcano.
A place where time seems to stand still and create its own temporality, letting the wind carry with it the stories of the locals that blur between magic and legends, resonating like the throbbing heart of the region.
