Crystalline Behind the Wall

“The myths of the Ijka indigenous people, whom we call the Arhuacos, tell that in the beginning, the sky did not project light upon the earth, and they lived in darkness until a woman gave birth to a beautiful child who radiated light from his entire body. His brilliance was so immense that it shone through the crack of the door. Since the mother did not let anyone enter her house for fear of someone stealing her child, people began playing harmonious music with flutes, seashells, and drums, which lured her out of hiding and left her senseless. At that moment, her child escaped and, flying through the air, rose to the sky. At that very moment, the earth was illuminated.”

At first, I didn’t understand why this legend came to mind when I first saw José Luis’s photos, but as I looked at each image in this exhibition, I found the reason. The prehistoric stones scattered throughout the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and these children sleeping peacefully on them carry the light and radiance of the child from the legend who illuminated the earth. Now I know that José Luis lived with them for a long time, learning their history and sharing their daily lives before daring to use his camera. This is why his photos possess such depth, beauty, and almost sacred luminosity.

The child staring curiously at the lens, with the hand of his father holding the poporo—the vessel that concentrates male thought; the mothers with their woven bags that also gather their thoughts; the sacred mountains, fathers of snow, rain, and fire; the sacred lagoons symbolizing ancient virgins, wives of the principal Mamas and protectors of travelers—all these elements create a mythological atmosphere present in José Luis’s photos.

Such imagery would never have been possible if he hadn’t approached the culture of our “older brothers” from the Sierra Nevada with humility and respect. These photos, like the child of the sun, illuminate this territory, which today is overshadowed by the horrors of violence.