With the work Tajëëw, ja tsa’any, Octavio Aguilar undertakes an act of rediscovery and reconnection with his roots, paying tribute to the land where he was born: Oaxaca, Mexico. The title of the work is in Mixe (or Ayuk), the language spoken by the artist himself and by the Ayuuk community to which he belongs. “Tajëëw” is the name of one of the mythical ancestors in Ayuuk culture, and the choice to title the work in his native tongue serves as both a political and symbolic act of cultural resistance—an additional tribute to his heritage and people.
The project emerged from a long process of genealogical research and collective memory, carried out through dialogue with the artist’s grandmother and members of the local community. In this process, Aguilar reconstructs not only his own family history but also that of his people. The work thus becomes a vehicle of cultural transmission and identity affirmation: a project that weaves together testimony, imagination, and representation. Aguilar stages a series of portraits of friends who appear as Tajëëw and Kontoy, two ancestral figures in Ayuuk mythology. Tajëëw, in particular, is depicted as a mythological, powerful, and hieratic being, holding lightning bolts—an image that evokes the presence of a primordial deity. The work’s aesthetic draws heavily from traditional visual codes: in the background, a hand-drawn landscape depicts a maize field framed by mountains, both central symbols in indigenous cosmogony. In this context, photography becomes not only an artistic medium but also a tool for cultural testimony. Aguilar integrates visual languages and narrative practices specific to his community, positioning himself as an active vehicle of that message. His works gather oral and material testimonies, reworking them through visual form and returning them as artworks imbued with deep cultural, political, and symbolic value.
From drawing and painting to photography, sculpture, installation, and performance, Octavio Aguilar (b. 1986, Oaxaca, Mexico) works across a wide range of expressive media, combining artistic practice with political reflection. At the heart of his research lies a critical stance toward Western systems of representation, which often fail to grasp or express the complexity and plurality of other cultures. Aguilar positions himself as a spokesperson for an artistic vision centered on memory, oral tradition, and indigenous identity.
This article is part of the editorial focus that Generazione Critica is dedicating, throughout the month of August, to the festival Les Rencontres de la Photographie in Arles. Within this context, Octavio Aguilar presents the project Tajëëw its Kontoy, on view at the Espace Monoprix. The work acts as a bridge between past and present, between the individual and the collective, between art and identity—offering a powerful and necessary reflection on forms of representation and the memory of indigenous cultures.
Octavio Aguilar. Tajëëw, ja tsa´any (Tajëëw, the snake), 2020.
Courtesy of the artist / Parallel Oaxaca.
13/08/25
