Alejandra Rajal
(Mexico)Alejandra Rajal is a freelance photographer based in Mexico. Her work seeks to expand the understanding of different realities that coexist in the same world, why we think or act as we do, through themes such as the environment, culture, gender, religion, among others. She is a member of Women Photograph, a fellow of IWMF, and a grantee of National Geographic Society and Fundacion Gabo. Her work has been featured in The Guardian, National Geographic, El Pais, Vice, FT, among others.
ConnectThe Changing Wave
In the coastal line of Quintana Roo, Mexico, a natural phenomenon has mutated into something unnatural since 2014, when a seaweed known as sargassum started to arrive in massive amounts to the beaches becoming a problem for the ecosystem. The project looks to tell the personal stories of people living in the village of Mahahual, exploring questions about the past, future and present, but most importantly the bond between humans and nature sharing a common space.
BTS Footage
Gallery
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Florentino Bellos alias “Chac” with a barracuda he just caught. He and his family go and dive in the Caribbean Sea to get fish to eat and sell.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, The movement of waves changes every day during sargassum season, some days it can clear it up other days, it arrives to the coast in massive quantities.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Jesús walks in the manglars with his dog.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, The whole family pushes the boat to the sea after it got stranded in the sargassum.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Soldiers clean up the coast during a windy day. Usually, they are in charge of the sargassum in the sea but when the weather is not good they do it on the ground.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, A blowfish that died probably stuck in the sargassum and the lack of oxygen in the water.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF63mmF2.8 R WR, Victor Rosales shows a turtle egg after finding a recent nest that needs to be marked to be protected from thieves.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Victor Rosales walks at sunrise checking the ground before releasing newborn turtles.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, A newborn loggerhead turtle passes through the sargassum before reaching the sea.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Since the well may have some infiltration from sargassum waste, the family prefers to get rainwater like the one Manuela is carrying.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Florentino Bellos alias “Chac” takes a rest in the hammock after a day of fishing.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, The sargassum changes its appearance very quickly. This is how it looks as soon as it arrives at the coast, but a few days later it will turn brown and smelly.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF63mmF2.8 R WR, Samuel plays with a shell before breakfast.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Manuela Torres likes to take walks on the coastline, searching for objects that have been thrown and can be useful.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Besides the sargassum, garbage from all over the world arrives on the coast, there is a registry of around 60 countries where this garbage is from besides Mexico, from Europe to Asia.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Samuel López hugs his father Víctor López while he checks a harpoon with his nephew Juan Tuz.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Deisy shows a baby bird that she is taking care of after it fell from its nest.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF63mmF2.8 R WR, Before living here Juan was in Chetumal with his family. He has been here for a few months now and is slowly adapting to a new life.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF63mmF2.8 R WR, Manuel López Eek prepares bait under the scorching sun in a lake that is next to the beach.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF63mmF2.8 R WR, Sardines were caught to be used as bait, the net also caught some sargassum with them.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Luis and Jesús try new fishing techniques by themselves.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, A group of divers get ready to work in Mahahual.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, As the day ends, the tide will rise. Taking away or bringing in more sargassum. Is not set in stone what will happen here in the future but in the meantime, people here will keep carrying on trying to make their world a better place.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF63mmF2.8 R WR, A strange scene, after hundreds of fishes and other species, died on the coasts of Mahahual most likely because of a phenomenon called eutrophication that creates a lack of oxygen in the waters that have an overproduction of algae (sargassum).
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Deisy Ek Kool, arrived here after marrying Victor. They live between Sian Ka’an and Chetumal but with the pandemic, they decided to stay here for most of the time since they think is safer for them and the kids.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Juan Tuz dreams of becoming a musician, he writes his own music and tries to come up with new sounds for songs.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Here there is no running water so they use this well to get water to drink and clean.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, A stranded chair that arrived at the last tide.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Manuela Torres has been living with her husband and son in Sian Ka’an for more than two decades. Her days are spent taking care of her family and her animals.
©Alejandra Rajal | GFX50S II & GF45mmF2.8 R WR, Jesús López Ek and Samuel López Ek, are siblings and live between Sian Ka’an and Chetumal with their parents.
