Robin Alysha Clemens

Yo soy otro tú, tú eres otro yo
(I am another you, you are another me) (In Lak’ech Ala K’in)
Mexico is a country that has embraced, accepted, challenged and fought various traditions and religions throughout its history: starting with the indigenous rituals of the Mayans and Aztecs, then Catholicism imposed by the Spanish colonists to the various cultural influences from Africa and from Latin and North America. While the majority of Mexicans identify as Catholics, the influences of indigenous customs and animistic traditions prior to the colonization are still present today. Mexico is a country where different mystical and religious traditions blend and mutate against a backdrop of a complex political and social history.
‘Yo soy otro tú, tú eres otro yo’ is a portrayal of the Mexican people and their faith. Photographer Robin Alysha Clemens travelled to Mexico to meet with, interview and photograph over 60 believers: curanderos (spiritual healers), shamans, Catholics, Buddhists, nuns, brujas (witches), supporters of Santa Muerte (Our Lady of Holy Death), spiritual midwives, videntes (seers), new age spiritualists, artists and indigenous people like the Nahua, Seri and Yaqui. Focusing on the diversity of contemporary spirituality in Mexico, this project explores the unseen and unveils the underlying similarities between these spiritual practices. Clemens looks beyond the altars, icons and religious symbols, to capture the people behind these beliefs.