Cyanotype and Van Dyke brown printing. 9 x 13 inches
Guatemalan Stories describes the aftermath of a 36-year civil war, the signing of peace accords, and a situation that has become even more violent in “the land of eternal spring”. I combined my individual interviews with public reports of extraordinary efforts by ordinary people to improve human rights. Rather than use gory photographs, I chose to intensify the sense of danger by using dark and shadowy sun-printing techniques.
The protective case is covered in unique fabric manually created by a Mayan woman on a back-strap loom. In the same tradition, I have brushed photographic emulsions to rag paper and bound the book by hand.