Codex YTREBIL, (liberty backwards), is based on a series of small books by anonymous Indigenous artists in the XVI Century known as Testeriano codices. Many of the images came from my research at the Bibliotèque Nationale in Paris which holds hundreds of Mexican Indigenous manuscripts and codices in its collection that are rarely seen by the public. The Testerianobooks, usually written in ancient Otami, were used during catechism sessions in the colonial Christianization of the Native American populations in Central Mexico. My version is not religious but a secular “catechism” with a nonlinear vision of a colonial legacy going out of control with difficult issues plaguing humanity. Concepts like freedom, democracy and fraternity mean different things to different polarized social groups, social classes and political parties. In a world where the truth is understood backwards, I am addressing this reality with a sense of humor.”
“Codex YTREBIL”
