BUNDLED JUNCUS Picture
Kumeyaay juncus basket weaver CELIA SILVA ESPINOZA inspects a fresh bundle of natural juncus (aka spiny rush) on the doorstep of her Kumeyaay indigenista home in San Jose de la Zorra, Mexico.
Celia's Kumiai home, a makeshift Indian shack, remains without electricity and water in the 21st century (2006). This structure is typical of the Kumeyaay homes in her remote valley ejido indigenista.
The elder Indigenous woman is famous for her coiled juncus basketweaving in the American Indian tribal communities of the U.S.-Mexico border region -- a tribal homeland her Kumiai people have occupied for some 12,000 years.
Indigenous lifestyle pictures photographed by Gary Ballard on May 5, 2006, documents Kumeyaay Indian living conditions in Mexico at the turn of the 21st Century.
The freshly-picked juncus was harvested in Alpine, CA and delivered here to Celia by her grand niece, master Kumeyaay basketweaver Eva Salazar, who is also from the San Jose de la Zorra tribal community rancho ejido. Eva has many times credited Aunt Celia for teaching her how to weave the traditional coiled juncus baskets their remote Kumiai village is famous for.
Doña Celia is a featured indigenous ethnobotanist consultant in Mike Wilken's 2012 SDSU Anthropology Master of Arts Thesis.
Celia Silva Espinoza Portrait:
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Celia Silva, elder Kumiai Native American Indian tribal ethnographic artist environmental portrait standing in the doorway of her Kumiai home in the San Jose de la Zorra tribal ejido, May 5, 2006. Doña Celia Silva Espinoza is an indigenous ethnobotanist consultant featured in Michael Alan Wilken's 2012 SDSU Anthropology Master of Arts Thesis. Celia had lots of children who had lots of children -- I am not sure how many great grandchildren she has or if she is still alive in 2026 -- but she is greatly loved and respected by family and community. +++++ Production note: I did nothing in Adobe Photoshop to Celia other than remove a few stray hairs from her face -- HER EYES and face are 99 percent untouched -- I would normally whiten the whites in the eyes a bit in a low-ambient-light scene like this (with no flash or reflector used), but left this one as it came perfect out of the camera RAW format. Camera settings: iso 1600, wide open aperature, 1/20th second shutter speed -- nailed focus on eyes, no noticable subject or camera movement blur. If Celia's above portrait image was a musical note it would be in perfect pitch! Kumiai Abuela (Grandmother):
Joven Chely Carrillo takes a photo with her Kumiai grandmother Celia Silva in front of Celia's home in San Jose de la Zorra, Mexico. Celia is Chely's paternal grandmother (Armando Melendrez is Celia's son). Chely really brought home the love to the moment! MORE PHOTOGRAPHER NOTES: As a portrait photographer -- my ultimate challenge is to guide the subject mentally to a real place, a real memory (and everything will follow naturally) -- for example, Chely stepped in, put her arm around grandma, and took Celia to a real place -- it's obvious in Celia's total demeanor. Authenticity is very hard for most people to fake under the camera's scrutiny. My biggest concern in photographing people is to watch out for posers (pasted on smiles and forced unnatural body language). If I can get a good poser, I can usually get them to a moment, by asking something like: What was the best day of your life? Or what is the biggest paycheck you ever got? This is an instinct a photographer has or they should stick to shooting inanimate objects.
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