No Present to Remember is a series of soft sculptures created from family photographs during my childhood in Mexico, combined with salt sourced from Great Salt Lake and Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, my home for the last twenty-four years. The collection of photographs from which this series originates is among the few keepsakes I carried with me when my family relocated to the U.S. in 1999 when I was twelve years old. Revisiting these snapshots as an adult, I became keenly aware of the contrasting circumstances that molded my upbringing within two distinct geographical locations. Each piece in No Present To Remember is a reflection on how these disparate landscapes have shaped my identity and experiences over the years.

This series required me to enlarge and print my family photographs on cotton cloth and submerge them in local saltwater. As the cloth slowly dries, it absorbs the salt, resulting in a desaturation of the images and creating a malleable medium for sculpting before it dries. Through careful manipulation of the 2D images while sculpting the cloth support, I both obscure and reveal details, echoing the ways in which memories can transform and shift in our minds over time. This deliberate distortion of the photographs serves as a metaphor for the subjective nature of memory, prompting reflection on the ways in which ongoing individual experiences and the environments in which they take root shape one's interpretations of the past.

In the process of rediscovering these images, I became acutely aware of their profound influence on the memories I carry from my childhood. Their impact extends beyond mere recollection, subtly shaping the narrative of my personal history, often imbuing the captured moments with a sense of romanticism that can subtly distort reality. Each piece thus becomes a tangible manifestation of the intricate interplay between my individual past and the continuously unfolding present.

Inkjet print on broadcloth, salt from Great Salt Lake and Bonneville Salt Flats. Soft sculptures. Size varies per piece, small pieces approx. 2" x 5" x 4", larger pieces 2" x 8" x 11".