PROJECTION MAPPING

FOREIGN MOLARS, Martin Guevara, 2018, video, projection mapping, paper, ice

In this time-based installation I present N-400 documents, which are used to determine eligibility for naturalization in the United States, frozen into slabs of ice. I project edited video of child dental exams onto all four slabs as an attempt to recreate similar exams done on children seeking asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border. These exams are illegally conducted as a way of deciding if the children are adults or not depending on the molars. If said children have adult molars they are then immediately sent to a different camp akin to prison. These exams have been proven to inaccurately determine the age of these children but were continued to still be used. The use of ice is a play on words for ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and the time it takes for it to expire into puddles symbolizes the lengthy process of becoming a citizen in the United States. The audio that plays during the duration of the installation is a recording from a dental instruction video where we are guided through an exam. The sounds that play in the background are meant to play along with the ice as I imagined an ominous and cold dental office.