Snapshot 08: Artist Statement by Mariana Sequera Dorronsoro

Installation Photo of Snapshot 08: La Galera by Mariana Sequera Dorronsoro.

Mariana Sequera Dorronsoro is a MA Fine Art student at LJMU. This is the artist statement she submitted to our open call.

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La Galera is a project inspired by Assemblage Philosophy, Agnes Varda’s gleaning approach, and Indigenous methodologies. It centres on Indigenous resurgence and reconciliation, using materials gathered through foraging, gleaning, and gardening. Rooted in the stories of my great-great-grandmother, the project seeks to evoke a sense of ancestral protection, to guard stories at risk of being forgotten and to preserve the fading legacy of my people, the Jira Jaras of Venezuela, whose existence was nearly erased following Spanish colonization.

The focus of the project lies in the presence, dialogues and relationships between the materials displayed. Some objects starkly contrast with one another, like the sweet corn leaves from last year’s harvest placed alongside metals and more durable materials like wood. Moss and autumn leaves evoke the fleeting nature of our existence, reminding us of our vulnerability as humans. As well as gleaned items such as human hair and false teeth.

In Venezuela, where we experience seasons differently due to our location near the equator, there is an almost perpetual summer, with a consistent sense of warmth and abundance. In contrast, the seasons here feel more pronounced, as dramatic markers of the cycles of life. As I seek to reconnect with my Indigenous heritage in this foreign land, I do so with respect for the new environment and the ways it shapes my perceptions and practice.

Now living in a city, I find myself surrounded by a different set of objects to glean—used vapes, discarded wood, and other remnants of urban life. These objects challenge the depth of connection with my environment. However, the Deleuzian and Guattarian ideas that inform my work push me to embrace this context, acknowledging the interdependence of objects, people, dynamics, and circumstances in shaping my experience and the materials I work with.

Finally, as an immigrant I have a limited access to space. This work offers momentary stability and satisfies the desire for space, for some kind of ground, allowing me to establish a connection to my heritage and the environment around me, even in the midst of transience and deep uncertainty.

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@marianaedurne on Instagram