MADISON

MADISON is Latinoamérican resistance, persistence, and resilience in the north. A safe space, thought out and activated by a group of friends, has been a nourishing anchor of belonging for a group of Latino American men and their families in Brooklyn, NY

MADISON is a body of work that engages with the community, Latino American culture, and migrant impermanence within the U.S. Set in Bushwick, Brooklyn. The project is a four-year documentation of weekly encounters between a community of Latino American immigrants living in Bushwick, Brooklyn, who are set to bring their culture forward. Brought together by their love for fútbol, more than 15 people gather at a playground better known in the community as MADISON. The act of sharing is at the center, bringing goals, a ball, or beers for everyone to partake in. 

The project represents the resilience of the migrant experience, of those who left everything behind, embodying what Eduardo Galeano describes in Open Veins of Latin America, a history of extraction and endurance, now lived through diasporic existence. In a country that paradoxically both embraces and rejects those who seek fortune in the giant of the north, MADISON exists within a limited, liminal space, battling assimilation while preserving identity. MADISON is a direct reflection of my interests and life journey as a Colombian, Latino American, and immigrant. 

As a member of this community, I started the project four years ago, documenting our lives every Saturday. I’m particularly interested in the in-between moments, the sharing of beers and food, and the laughs and storytelling that are representations of our Latino culture. Personally, in my 15 years in the U.S., I’ve always struggled to feel at home in a place I didn't come to voluntarily. When I was introduced to MADISON, I felt a sense of belonging that I had not experienced thus far. Their obsession with fútbol and their human warmth transported me back to Colombia, to a familiar past I thought I had lost. This project aims to exalt this feeling, these encounters that represent Latino warmth, resilience, and acts of living in the present. 

MADISON is not the name of a long-gone president nor the name of a fancy avenue in a city. It is a group of friends and the intersection where friendships and belonging are built. Cold Modelo and Corona are the drinks of preference. Vallenato, Corridos, Reggeaton, Salsa, Cumbia, and Bachata are listened to, and the games of the major Fútbol leagues are watched on cell phone screens. Representing the permanence of what is impermanent is where Latino American culture, Spanish language, and Futbol thrive.