Production

The Lotería Hotline

The biggest development since I last wrote: I set up a Lotería hotline using Twilio. People can call in and share an item or character they feel belongs on a Lotería card, something that represents their experience, their memory, their culture. I've had over 20 callers so far, and I honestly wasn't prepared for how moving it would be. Every voicemail feels like insight into someone’s home. People are sharing their stories, and that's exactly the kind of relational depth I hoped this project would reach. The hotline has become one of my favorite parts of the whole thing.

San Antonio

I went home to San Antonio, Texas and I brought my camera. I photographed five subjects while I was there, and shooting in that environment felt completely different from New York. There's something about being in a city where Mexican American identity isn't an enclave but indistinguishable from everyday life. Check out the portraits here.

What's Next

Now that I have a growing body of portraits, I'm turning my attention to staged still lifes. I want the photography to expand beyond portraiture and into objects, like the majority of the cards. Still lifes feel like a natural companion to the Lotería concept: each card is, in its own way, a still life.

There's a lot more to flesh out, and the exhibition dates are getting close. But the project feels like it’s taking big steps forward!