BARRED:

One migrant’s odyssey after deportation

BARRED is the photographic companion to my book Border Hacker, which follows the life of Axel Kirschner after he was deported from New York, the only home he had ever known, to his birth country of Guatemala. 

For over a decade, I have followed Axel’s journey across Mexico and his struggle to return to the US. Along the way, I’ve had full access to his daily life, often living with him for months at a time. I document his dangerous treks through the jungle and desert, his work as a hacker, and even his kidnapping by one of Mexico’s top migrant “activists.” I also include photographs Axel took himself on his cell phone (curated and edited by me), which illuminate the daily struggles of being a migrant and provide an interesting aesthetic juxtaposition to, and dialogue with, professional portrayals of migrant experience. 

I have placed a black bar across Axel’s eyes for his own protection. We have tried to embrace this forced semi-anonymity, using the black bar as a symbol which draws attention to all the ways that undocumented status bars migrants from the world. Axel is barred from a country, a life he desires, and even the means of self-representation. Every time the audience looks at a picture of him, the black bar forces them to acknowledge this burden; they can’t ignore it. 

If your institution is interested in hosting BARRED, please reach out.