Technicolor Mexicans Series

History has always been written by the conquerer. It is essential for the defenintion and perpetuation of culture. The downplay - or even complete neglect - of the history of non-Anglo Americans has always been a tool for domination and an issue to be debated. Specifically, the neglect of Mexicano history from the southwest United States has resulted in the past marginalization of people of Mexican descent.

The photographs here have been collected by my family. They are traces of the past that I had never known about before I saw them. For some of my family, they represent memories of a different world. For others, they are shadows of people who they'll never see again. For me, they were artifacts. I didn't live through that time with them and can only know about it through any stories that anyone is willing to tell me; and through these photos.

I am able to make these images more real to me through the handling and digital manipulation of them. By adding an artificial color spectrum to these images, I'm attempting to preserve them through my own interpretations. It allows me to realize the shared history and experiences of my family.

From the images, I get a sense that there were some things in the past that are very much the same, and that I experience in alot of the same ways. We still get married, have families, go out, hang out, drink beer, and buy cars. They may be different cars, different beer, different dances, even a different idea about what makes a family; but we still experience these things. On the other hand I also get a sense that through the history that I get from these photos, My family has lived and perservered through some things that I will probably never be able to understand.

- Jimmy Castillo