Collateral damages

 

«I am looking for places that conserve a trace of the demolished architectural structure that in a sense speak of the political-economical situation of a country that is finding a way to inject its economy by turning their backs to growing centrally and promoting and subsidizing the mass construction of housing complexes in the out skirts of the metropolitan area». And the suburbs of large cities in Mexico become in the photographs by Alejandro Cartagena the mirror of a relentless urban transformation, solely dictated by the laws of a market that only apparently follows precise and inevitable dynamics, and often is surprising even the so-called planners with swerves and unplanned developments. The signs of this quest for profits are there for everyone, and these wounds inflicted on the body of the city and its more immediate region are the true focus of research of the Dominican photographer.  «Urban growth depends and causes deconstruction in inner city areas», he adds, «in a different way from other urban renewal and growth plans of more economically strong countries, like that of China, where the government uses its power and plans to displace people out of their homes in central urban areas. Developers here only seek to find the cheapest land in order to generate bigger profit. Land in downtown is highly overpriced by market speculation, making investors look to un-urbanized land to create new developments that are lacking of all kinds of infrastructure».

 

 

Photo:

© Courtesy of Alejandro Cartagena

www.alejandrocartagena.com

(click on the image at right for more pictures)