“Exodus in search of the blue gold” - Daily life on the Cuates de Australia ranch in North East Mexico appears to be boundless and carefree. The sparse landscape stretches as far as the eye can see. On horseback and swinging lassos the cowboys herd their cattle. The drought creeps up on them quietly, almost unnoticed. Vultures circling over animal carcasses, coyotes howling at night and dehydrated pregnancies are its harbingers. Yet, in the end, when the source runs dry, it means action. The exodus must begin. Life comes into view – a new spring, a newborn. The circle is complete; a storm draws in and rain reinvigorates the cracked earth. The community heads towards home.
Magical realism and an arresting metaphor of life and death. Carolina Piotrowski