We are pleased to announce that Wonderful Machine’s Producer and Marketing Specialist, Eloísa Garcia, has been granted an exhibition at The National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), the most important public research university in Mexico City. Inspired by her book 707 days in Algeria, the exhibit showcases images from her experience living in this North African country for nearly two years, and is scheduled to run from September 27th through October 28, 2022.
In 2012, Elo and her husband moved to Algeria for a diplomatic mission. During this time, after working 10 years as an executive producer for advertising, she reconnected with photography and started writing articles and submitting photographs to a publication in Queretaro, Mexico. As a result of the success of these photographs, Elo began putting together the book 707 days in Algeria.
The most special thing about Algeria for me was discovering that the globalized world does not exist. That there are countries that are completely alien to what we consider usual. That time in countries like Algeria is perceived in a different way, people living in the desert seem to live in a completely different era than the current technological one. Algeria does not resemble any country I have ever known. I had never seen a city between the sea and the desert.
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México was founded in 1551, making it the oldest in North America. It is the largest university in Latin America and is ranked among the best in Latin America, Spain, and Portugal.
A self-described dancer, defender of art, and mother of two, Elo, who was born in Mexico City, has had the privilege to live around the world in places including Switzerland and Spain, as well as Algeria. Currently, she works as a freelance photographer and marketing specialist for Wonderful Machine, and she is also finishing the post-production phase of her second book inspired by the project: La Costa da Morte. La Costa da Morte is a photography book with texts by several different contributors, inspired by nature, landscapes, and the sea in the province of La Coruña, Galicia, northwest of the Iberian Peninsula.
With a degree in Communication from the Universidad Iberoamericana, CDMX, Elo also studied Color and Documentary Photography at The London Institute, UK. She has worked for over ten years as an executive producer of performing arts and audiovisual media. In 2012, she established her residence in Algiers. And from that point on, photography became her main professional activity. Algeria was her first source of inspiration — desert nature, sunsets of contrasting colors, people in their habitat, urban landscapes, and the enjoyment of everyday life are the themes that stand out the most in her digital portfolio. During her stay, Elo worked as a cultural management consultant for the Mexican Embassy. She also learned a fourth language, Italian, and wrote articles about her experiences in this unique desert region.
Algiers, city of children and guardian cats, city bathed in spices, baguettes and fruit, the mint tea sweetens you. Sea-level capital of Algeria, albeit one that doesn’t smell like sea: the Mediterranean will always provide and look after you, the intense rain will continue cleanse you. Immense country protected by the prophet. I miss the sound of your mosques that rang throughout the city day after morning at 4am.
In 2018, Elo returned to her hometown of Mexico City, where she continued working as a photographer and producer. On February 20, 2020, at the Mexican Institute for Justice (IMJUS, Coyoacán, Mexico City), her first photographic exhibition, inspired by the project 707 days in Algeria, debuted. The exhibition was well attended and remained open to the public for three weeks.
Thank you for welcoming me and allowing me to live in Algiers for 707 days where there was not a single day where I didn’t want to take a photo even from my balcony, amazed by the most contrasting sunsets I have ever seen. Thank you for showing me that detachment is essential and for motivating me to appreciate and be grateful even more. This book and exhibition are a tribute to my 707 days of life in Algeria.
Elo will be in Mexico City for the duration of this exhibition and is eager to connect with other creatives.
Elo reached out to Wonderful Machine to give us an update following the event. She was pleased to report that the inauguration was very well received, with approximately 80 people in attendance.
Elo was interviewed by Televisa Digital for their coverage of the event. There was a digital and a printed article about the exhibition in El Heraldo de México, and the event was televised on the University’s television station (TV UNAM). Congratulations to Elo on all of her success!
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