Lizeth Arauz’s Mirar hacia arriba (Look Up) is a must-see series of 100 photographs shot in black-and-white photographs to archive purity without distracting the viewer.
This is a highly objective look at the lives of people who suffer from achondroplasia, a growth disorder more commonly known as “dwarfism.” The disorder can happen at birth and affects both sexes. The children have relatively normal torsos but shorter arms and legs.
A scene on a bench: Amador sits on his girlfriend’s lap, kissing her. Amador is Lizeth’s neighbor. He seems happy, his eyes kindly and admiring. This sweet scene inspired Lizeth to take a closer look at the lives of these people. She required several years to establish a sincere friendship and working relationship through the photo project Mirar hacia arriba.
Amador brought Lizeth into this closed community in the heart of Mexico City. He shared with her their private lives and difficult experiences: lost children, health problems, divorce, homelessness, infidelity. These are a part of all our daily lives, but their world and their relationship to their surroundings is without a doubt more complicated than ours.
Read the full article on the French version of L’Oeil.
