I made illustrations for this project, described by SIMPARCH as follows:

Water is the blood that nourishes even before the milk can flow - Ivan Illich

Agua Gringos

SIMPARCH's project for inSite is about taking the water coursing through Tijuana's pipes and making it fit for drinking. This gesture of purifying water directly challenges the cliché, "don't drink the water". Using the simple concept of solar water distillation, the Dirty Water Initiative calls on the Sun Gods for help in heating contaminated water in glass-covered basins. This causes it to condense on the underside of the glass. This condensation flows down to a channel, which directs the distillate through a tube where it collects in a vessel outside of the still. The public exhibit consists of an array of solar stills, a contaminated supply of water, containers for clean water, pipe and fittings. The stills are connected in series, a mini water purification plant. After the exhibit ends, individual stills will be integrated into some of Tijuana's informal communities.

Land of Opportunity

Most Americans think that TJ is dirty, disorganized and chaotic. After spending time in Tijuana we understood Colonias do fulfill basic needs without services and infrastructure most Americans expect. The absolute inability of institutions and policy to catch up, to aid, and correct these needs creates a situation where people do more for themselves to make their communities work.

Ivan Illich calls these communities "spontaneous architects of our postmodern future", and the colonias are demonstrations of "survival on the technophagic fringe". These colonia-spheres are environments that experiment with more forgiving ways of existence and new forms of conviviality. Not to be revered, the colonia-spheres should be explored for insights into their resiliency, efficiency, and poetry.